Flathead Valley Community College President Jane Karas told trustees that federal budget sequestration may impact the college but she doesn’t know how much yet.

“We’ll be monitoring it carefully,” she said. “It won’t have a major impact on us initially.”

Karas said she didn’t think it would affect any of the college’s federal grants. She said that the Pell grants to low income students were being “held harmless.”

“Those students shouldn’t worry about that,” she said. “They will receive their Pell.”

Karas made her comments Monday during her monthly president’s report to the college board of trustees. She covered a range of other timely topics, including the new nursing and health center building, plans for the University Center and the upcoming invasion of high school students during “College for a Day.”

According to Karas, the new $5 million Broussard nursing and health building remains on schedule with completion by Swank Enterprises expected by the end of March.

“We still expect to move in faculty and most programs the week of spring break in the first week in April,” she said. “We won’t open the student health center until fall.”

The college has set the public grand opening for April 30.  

She said the building changes on a daily basis. Trustee Mark Holston called the amount of space amazing.

“It’s like an optical illusion,” he said. “It appears to be three times as large when you are inside.”

Karas moved on to the March launch of a needs assessment to expand existing or add new four-year degree and graduate programs to almost 30 now offered in partnership with the university system and some private colleges.

The partnership allows students to transfer to the four-year colleges but take classes mainly through distance learning on the FVCC campus.

Last fall, the college announced plans to explore a University Center building to bring on-site instruction for these four-year and graduate degrees. The needs assessment ties into that program to enhance the students’ learning experiences with face-to-face instruction.

Karas said she had received a lot of questions since a story last week by the Flathead Beacon about the community college becoming a four-year college in the near future.

“We are not about to become a four-year college or university,” Karas said. “We are a two-year college and we have the best of both worlds by being able to be a two-year college with a locally elected governing board responsive to the needs in our local community.”

As a two-year school, Karas said the college can form partnerships with existing public and private colleges to offer four-year degrees as needed. She expects to bring the needs assessment to the trustees sometime in the spring.

Karas also previewed Tuesday’s “College for a Day,” where FVCC will host up to 700 high school students. The event has expanded to include high schools outside the local area such as Polson and Thompson Falls high schools.

“It’s a lot of work, an inordinate amount of work, but it really pays off,” she said. “It’s a chance for them to see the wonderful faculty we have teaching at this college and the great job that they do.”

She said some of the students have never been inside a college. This visit allows them to see what it’s like and see themselves as potential college students.

“Whether they come to college here or go to college anywhere, it’s a chance to experience higher education and see that they can succeed and it’s possible for them to go to college.”

Reporter Candace Chase may be reached at 758-4436 or by email at cchase@dailyinterlake.com.