Arts, Entrepreneurship Alive at HCC

By Joseph Patrick Bulko







These are exciting times at Howard Community College (HCC). With a new performing arts center and a leading-edge curriculum, HCC is continuing to increase its value to the business community. "We're establishing partnerships," said Jane Sharp, college spokesperson. "We're in tune with what the community needs."



The role of the community college continues to evolve as an emphasis on workforce development and entrepreneurship augment traditional curricula. In offering an active student exchange program and a comprehensive slate of world languages, the college has become a valuable tool filling corporate and government needs in this age of globalization.



The college's Charles Ecker Business Training Center trains more than 7,000 employees from more than 60 companies, government offices and other organizations around the county, said Joanne Erickson of HCC's Continuing Education & Workforce Development division. "The training can occur at the companies' sites or ours, on a day and at a time of their choosing. Companies can choose topics from our schedule of classes or create their own."



The most common training areas include computer software (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, etc.), leadership skills (team building, coaching, management skills, CEO workshops), people skills (conflict resolution, stress management, anger management) and communication skills (writing, speaking).



Spanish language training for specific industries, such as landscaping, construction and law enforcement, is another key focus, due to the growing Hispanic workforce. Other priorities are health care (including Certified Nursing Assistant, Patient Care Technician and phlebotomy programs) and adult basic skills (like basic math, basic writing/reading and GED preparation).







On the Entrepreneurial Front



The mission of HCC's entrepreneurship program is to help aspiring and existing business owners and students develop themselves and their businesses. The program targets under-served populations such as minorities, women and people with disabilities, and it is suited to individuals who are fiscally challenged due to its affordable tuition-based structure.



"Our unique educational format provides a win-win-win for the community, for entrepreneurs and for students in classes," said Sharon Schmickley, chair of the Business Computer Division. "Students create their own businesses with the infusion of other students. Our programs assure that all business students will have the opportunity to participate in or create a sole proprietorship or an LLC before leaving HCC."



"Our program is unique in the country because we have integrated two emerging disciplines, coaching and entrepreneurship," said Betty Noble, director of the Center for Entrepreneurial and Business Excellence. "Howard Community College has a fully developed curriculum in each of these disciplines that is readily accepted by the diverse student population."



Noble added that business coaching is the hub in the wheel that anchors the college's entrepreneurship efforts. "Coaching helps the entrepreneur to develop purpose, as well as an entrepreneurial spirit and mindset. The coach pulls together all of the important resources available to the entrepreneur and holds the entrepreneur accountable."



Through a recent grant from the National Science Foundation, HCC has embarked on a Technology Assessment Program (TAP) aimed at introducing technology transfer to the marketplace. A class this semester is bringing four inventions from local government-funded labs like The Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Lab into the classroom for students to evaluate.



"Ultimately this program will support the transfer of innovation from the lab to business and industry," she said.







The Global Village



Student exchanges are the goal of HCC's International Education Division. "We want to try to give our students the opportunity to study abroad," said George Barlos, director of international education. "This is very valuable in a global economy."



The program has blossomed in recent years, coinciding with the growing international population of the United States. Barlos said there are 1,200 non-native students at the college. "They come from everywhere, including India and Africa."



For students, studying abroad represents "an opportunity for personal growth," he said. Professionally, "it's a wonderful asset to have studies abroad in a home location. Last year, 37 students went to Mexico. This past summer, 18 students went to China for immersion."



Howard is the only community college in Maryland with a full-time director in this discipline. "College leadership is very supportive of international education," Barlos said, noting that his position was created last year.



In addition to International Education, HCC's World Language Program features an array of critical languages, including Chinese, Korean, Russian, Greek, Arabic, French, German, Italian and Spanish.







Accent on the Arts



More great news for art students and faculty at HCC is the recent opening of the 78,000-square-foot Horowitz Visual and Performing Arts Center. "The college is 35 years old, and we have never had a facility specifically designed and built for the instruction of the arts," said Valerie Lash, chair of the Arts & Humanities Division.



"[The] arts need more room, and the Horowitz Center is bringing to Howard state-of-the-art facilities," she said. "Arts programs have grown tremendously in the last five years."



The curriculum has also expanded to offer new classes in media that formerly could not be accommodated, including sculpture, potter's wheel throwing, pastel, digital photography, studio photography lighting, interior design and gallery management.



"We have amazing staff and faculty in the arts," Lash said. "All of them are working artists in some way. The students get to interact with faculty as artists."



The quality of art was considered throughout the planning, design and construction, too. "Every room in the center was built specifically for an art form to be taught," she said. Music rooms feature high ceilings and soundproofing. "For the visual arts, the light is the most important feature. We have north-facing studios for the best light. Even the architecture and design of the building is an art form."