By B.C. Manion
Work is under way to develop academic programming for Porter Campus at Wiregrass Ranch, the new Pasco-Hernando Community College (PHCC) site now under construction at SR 56 and Mansfield Boulevard in Wesley Chapel.
The $57 million campus is expected to begin offering classes next January, and plans call for the college to launch two new bachelor’s degree programs by the fall of 2014.
The college is already on the path to obtaining necessary approvals for a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) and a Bachelor of Applied Science, said Randy Stovall, provost at the college’s East Campus in Dade City.
There’s a need for both degree programs, Stovall told a meeting of the Greater Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce’s Economic Development committee.
“Most hospitals want to have BSNs,” Stovall said. “That’s what they want nationally. That’s what the demand is.”
There’s not enough access to BSN programs to produce the number of nurses that hospitals need, he said.
The college’s program will be a two-plus-two program, Stovall said. During the first two years, the student can become a registered nurse and can continue for another two in order to get a bachelor’s degree.
The plan is for the BSN to be an online degree so people can go to work and take classes at their convenience.
Stovall said the Bachelor of Applied Science degree, with a major in management supervision, is likely to appeal to people in the business arena or public service roles.
For instance, people working for fire departments and law enforcement agencies may be interested in promotions but may need to broaden their skill set beyond the technical abilities they use in the field.
They need to know about management, budgeting and supervision, Stovall said. So, they can add a Bachelor of Applied Science to help them round out their skills.
In addition to adding the bachelor’s degrees, the college also plans to add two new Associate of Science Degree programs, Stovall said. One will be in accounting services and the other in financial services.
When the Porter campus opens, it will be PHCC’s fifth location. There are currently two each in Pasco and Hernando counties.
As PHCC pursues the right to offer bachelor degree programs, it is also contemplating a name change, Stovall said. The words “community college” have the connotation that the institution does not confer bachelor’s degrees, he said.
The college’s board of trustees is expected to select a new name this summer with the change pending approval of the bachelor’s degree programs.
