HVCC North Operations Coordinator Matty Blair provides a tour to prospective students at an open house in December. HVCC set up the same laboratories and hands-on workshops at HVCC North that are on the Troy campus.
Vincent Giordano/Provided by HVCC
MALTA — This semester, for the first time, the Malta campus of Hudson Valley Community College operated as its own branch.
It’s now an official branch of HVCC, dubbed HVCC North. Instead of eight full-time employees, there are 21 people working on campus. Instead of just a handful of classes, students can now complete five entire programs in Malta.
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The branch also opened its GlobalFoundries Workforce Training and Apprenticeship Center, following a $500,000 gift from the company. GlobalFoundries employs about 3,000 people at its technology campus nearby, which includes its headquarters and Fab 8 chip factory.
It’s been a time of tremendous growth for HVCC North. Just two school years ago, there was one full-time faculty member and only five full-timers in total, including a security guard and a facilities/grounds manager.
“Honestly, it’s just amazing now that we’re a branch campus. You can really feel the energy,” said Jonathan Ashdown, executive vice president for workforce and industry partnerships.
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There are 387 students enrolled this semester, including 101 high school students.
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The site has grown steadily since 2021, when there were 136 students.
Last year, HVCC asked the State University of New York and the state Education Department for permission to turn HVCC North into a full branch. Permission was granted in time for the fall semester.
For now, students can only complete five programs at the branch. They can also take general education courses for many other programs.
The five programs are: Clean Energy Management, Electrical Construction and Maintenance, Electrical Engineering Technology-Electronics, Engineering Science and the Health Sciences certificate.
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HVCC set up the same laboratories and hands-on workshops that are on the Troy campus. They include an electrical lab that looks like a house under construction, so students can practice putting in wires, outlets and electrical panels.
“Same experience and level of quality,” Ashdown said. “In my opinion, the labs are a little nicer because they are newer.”
The laboratories have also allowed the branch to offer classes it could not offer before, including biotechnology and organic chemistry.
“That not only opens up more doors for the sciences but also the health services,” Ashdown said.
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Becoming a branch has led to an increase in full-time students, which has naturally led to more student activities. Ashdown sees students kicking soccer balls, playing table tennis and other pickup games between classes.
“It’s just a great vibe,” he said. “If Malta’s closer to where you live and you can cut your commute down, it’s really a wonderful place to be.”