Tri-County Receives $241,898 in ARC
Funds to Enhance, Equip Labs, Purchase Equipment

CONTACT: LISA GARRETT, EXT. 2315

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 8/31/2000

PENDLETON --- Tri-County Technical College has received $241,898 in Appalachian Regional Commission funds to enhance and equip its Computer Technology and Mold Design labs and to purchase equipment for the new Respiratory Care department.

The College will match the award with $320,634 (57 percent) of the total award of $562,552.

The College's Business and Human Service Division will use $60,220 to enhance its Computer Technology lab by purchasing computer equipment and software that will allow students to learn skills in web development, Internet and multimedia applications.

The Industrial and Electronics Division will use $57,190 to enhance its Mold Design lab that provides students with hands-on instruction train to prepare them to work in companies that produce plastic and diecast parts and those that design and use these parts in their product lines. Specifically, vertical milling machines, a surface grinder, rapid prototyping machine and software will be purchased. This equipment will be used by students in the Electronics Engineering Technology, Industrial Electronics Technology, General Engineering Technology, and Machine Tool Technology curricula to get hands-on experience with industry standard equipment.

The College will use $124,508 of the grant funds to purchase equipment for the new Respiratory Care program which prepares students to take care of patients with cardiac or respiratory diseases in hospitals, nursing homes, private homes and doctor's offices.

Respiratory care is one of the fastest growing professions in the United States, and surveys reveal that the four hospitals in the tri-county have a need for at least 70 respiratory care technicians.

In January, the U.S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics projected employment of respiratory therapists to increase faster than the average of all occupations through the year 2006. The need for respiratory therapists is expected to increase 42.6 percent from 1998 - 2006.
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