NATHAN HARTER: My Place in Local Higher Education

Opinion

August 19, 2010

Anonymous Greensburg Daily News The Greensburg Daily News Thu Aug 19, 2010, 08:53 PM EDT

Greensburg — Let it not be said that I am ungrateful. Several years ago, the local school corporation built a new elementary school building, leaving them with three former elementary schools on their hands. The one only two blocks from my house, where all three of my children walked to school, was subsequently rededicated as a learning center.

Converting a building with tiny toilets to be used now for adults was a labor of love. I got to pick room seven, which has a sink and cloak rooms with pegs for children's coats. It's probably the biggest faculty office in the state of Indiana. And wouldn't you know that my wife saw this as an opportunity to offload a lot of books and old furniture.

So Greensburg set aside learning space for non-traditional students here in the center of town, complete with parking, technology, and faculty offices, as part of its P-16 mission. P-16 means pre-school through grade sixteen, which translates into the senior year of college. And, yes, we offer four-year degrees here.

As a matter of policy, the building is still owned and managed by the school corporation, and one of its chief ambitions has been to keep providers from overlapping each other. Is it really necessary to have two Industrial Technology degree offerings in this city? So they operate the facility.

The staff here have adopted a cooperative attitude. We are not in competition with each other. In fact, the colleges that serve the learning center complement each other, so that you can work with one university and still take credits from another. It's just a question of people down the hall talking with each other.

In addition to having an enormous office just two blocks from my house, I appreciate the spirit of the place. We all try to help each other as we all help the students. Being an adult student is never easy regardless. No point frustrating them unduly.

The sitting governor has made it a priority to credential and educate a Hoosier workforce. Without going to the state government for a handout, however, Decatur County made this happen using the resources we had available. If employers do not use the facility and if students do not enroll, then that would be a shame. Still, you can lead a horse to water, but you can't make him drink.

Looking back at over twenty years serving southeastern Indiana in post-secondary education, I am thankful to have spent the last several years in this situation. It has been heartening to be a part of something so visionary and accommodating. Since I don't say it very often, let me say it now: I'm glad to have been here for all this.

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