Copiah-Lincoln Community College has broken ground for a new Early Childhood Education Technology Building, literally. The school just demolished the vacant faculty housing on campus, freeing up the land for the new construction.

The Early Childhood Education Technology program has been at the college since 1978. Currently, the early program is housed in two locations: the R.E. Anderson building and a temporary trailer.

“This new facility provides the program with a state-of-the-art instructional space which brings the program and services under one roof, said Jane Hulon, vice president of instructional services. “This will increase efficiency, safety and convenience for Co-Lin students, program employees and lab school children and their parents.

Relocating this program to a new facility will free up much-needed space for future growth of existing programs.”

The new instruction building will be a single-story, 8,046-square-foot building on the perimeter of the campus containing classrooms, a computer lab, two faculty offices, a student workroom, a faculty workroom, a small kitchen, a designated dining/activity space and two outdoor playgrounds.

The building will also include childcare lab rooms with observation windows for infants, one-year-olds, two-year-olds and other pre-school children of Co-Lin employees and students.

The Co-Lin Board of Trustees is in the process of receiving bids for the project. The estimated cost is a little more than $2 million.

“The program has always been popular; however, the demand for its graduates has increased due to the recent changes in requirements for Head Start employees and teacher assistants,” Hulon said.

On average, there are 56 students enrolled in the technical program each year. After graduation, students receive an Associate in Applied Science degree and are able to continue their education at Jackson State University to complete a Bachelor of Science degree in Early Childhood Development, or students can begin careers in a variety of child care fields.

With a steady increase in enrollment, the college is excited to begin the process of creating a new facility for its students.