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Mount Wachusett Community College began its 61st school year with a twelve percent increase in enrollment, and it showed as students packed the campus for New Student Welcome events last week.
“I am feeling so fortunate and excited about the start of the fall semester,” noted MWCC President James Vander Hooven through the college’s new student engagement mobile app. “It was awesome welcoming faculty back and greeting new students.”
Students were entertained by Rocky Peter, singer-songwriter and former American Idol contestant, who shared his story of overcoming adversity including abandonment and slavery, to pursue his passion for music.
Keynote speaker Mickey Rowe, a disability and accessibility expert who is legally blind and on the autism spectrum, delivered a powerful message of resilience, motivation and understanding.
Student Parents who participated in the New Student Welcome events were able to leave their children in the MWCC Child Watch, managed by the Student Parent Support Group and Ann Reynolds.
“We have been so fortunate to receive grants to support this vital campus service,” Ann Reynolds noted. “Childcare is an overlooked basic need for many student parents.”
The child watch expansion has received funds from The Bemis Foundation, as well as a Career Readiness and Educational Access Grant from the Community Foundation of North Central Massachusetts.
Another MWCC fall tradition is the Brewer Center for Civic Learning & Community Engagement backpack drive which donated 38 backpacks, lunchboxes and additional supplies collected from employees and the community. Brewer Center work-study students Cassandra Peltola, Kelly Culkeen, and Mina Girouard coordinated the donations and prepared the backpacks for pick up from the Department of Children and Family Services.
Applications are still being accepted for the fall quick semester, which begins on October 30 and runs through December 22, 2023. The MWCC Fall Open House will be held on Saturday, October 28 from 8:30 am to 12:30 pm, interested students and families can sign up at mwcc.edu/openhouse.