Events
NC Governor Attends Groundbreaking For Innovative RTP Campus
RALEIGH, N.C. (August 10, 2016) - Governor Pat McCrory joined local business leaders, educators and other elected officials as Wake Tech broke ground on its newest venture: the RTP Campus in Morrisville. This 21st-century learning environment will focus on advanced, highly-technical programs and bring customized workforce training to corporations in Research Triangle Park and throughout Wake County. It will also make degree programs and professional credentialing much more accessible to those in the western part of the county.
“Economic development is what Wake Tech is all about!” said Wake Tech President Dr. Stephen Scott. “The demand for IT resources across the state and the country has increased tremendously, and this campus is being created to meet that demand.”
The RTP Campus is Wake Tech’s sixth campus and ninth Wake County site. Phase 1 covers 28 acres and will have the capacity to serve 1,350 students, with a three-story instructional building and 720 parking spaces. It is expected to open in the spring of 2018. Programs planned include Business Administration, Business Analytics, Computer Programming, and other technical programs as well as College/University Transfer and customized training through Wake Tech’s Corporate Solutions Division.
“This is going to help us recruit new industries, not just in the RTP, but in the entire region and across the state,” said Governor Pat McCrory. Wake Tech’s Corporate Solutions has already led statewide training for the Department of Motor Vehicles, and Governor McCrory said the state may call on the college to lead computer training for the Department of Information Technology.
Wake Tech Board of Trustees Chair Tom Looney, a former Lenovo executive, said he’s already working to make connections with local corporations, including global financial services company Credit Suisse.
Gary Russell, VP of Quality Enhancement at Credit Suisse, addressed the crowd as a local business leader and a Wake Tech graduate. Russell was a teacher before “retooling” at Wake Tech for what has been a very rewarding career in information technology. “It’s been 18 years since I graduated from Wake Tech,” Russell said, “and I’m thankful for the day I enrolled.”
The architects for Phase 1 of the RTP Campus are Perkins+Will. The construction managers are Clancy & Theys and Holt Brothers Construction
