GCC's Dansville Campus Center Relocates

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The new GCC Dansville Campus Center

BATAVIA, NY (07/16/2012)(readMedia)-- Dansville, NY- Genesee Community College has relocated to the former Dansville Middle School at 31 Clara Barton Street, just a block off Main Street in downtown Dansville, New York. While summer classes got underway on schedule in the new facility on July 2, new and returning students are encouraged to stop in and sign up for classes for the fall semester, which starts August 27, 2012.

More classrooms, modern science labs, an art and ceramic studio, a gymnasium, a 550-seat auditorium and a cafeteria are among the new spaces available for enhanced studies in more than 50 courses. Students will also be able to relax in the new Clara's Commons, a lounge that used to serve as the middle school's library. It's named after American Red Cross founder Clara Barton, who had a home in the village of Dansville and where she also established the first chapter of the Red Cross.

The ten-year lease with the Dansville Central School District will permit GCC to expand into more space as needed. Dansville Campus Center Associate Dean Peter Soscia says the school district has gone out of its way to ease the transition. "Although this move meant a lot of extra work for them, they never made it an issue and they act like we are all on the same team. It's about the community, which is why this arrangement works so well," he said.

Soscia says the new facility and relocation is also getting GCC students actively involved in new capacities and potential new functions. "Whenever possible, we believe in hiring our students to give them real world experiences and opportunities," Soscia said. "We'd like to see students in the office technology program running our office, and marketing students advertising our community events." Students also helped with the move by painting and assembling some of the furniture.

Soscia says there is still some minor work to do inside the building, with plans to renovate the parking lot this fall and utilize the auditorium for public performances.

A Grand Opening Celebration of the new Dansville Campus Center is planned for August 20, 2012 from 4:00 – 6:00pm. The event will feature a Works Project Administration (WPA) Art Exhibit, live music and refreshments. It is free and open to the public.

While the fall semester starts in just six weeks (August 27), there is still time to complete the free GCC application and register for classes. More than 60 courses will be offered this fall at the Dansville Campus Center in an array of subject areas-from Body Conditioning and Weight Training to Basic Math, American Cinema to Human Diversity, five different Business courses and much more.

The varied course subject matter reflects GCC's diversity in degree and certificate programs, which include more than 60 different options. No matter what program of study, all new fall 2012 registrants have their names entered into the weekly drawing for a pair of Darien Lake tickets now through Wednesday, August 15th. New students or returning students should stop by the new Dansville Campus Center at 31 Clara Barton Street, Dansville, NY 14437. The telephone number remains 585-335-7820 and the website is www.genesee.edu/Dansville.

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Editor's Note:

A photograph of the new Dansville Campus Center is available at: http://marketing.genesee.edu/images/DansvilleCC_ClaraBarton.jpg