During its meeting on May 17, Victoria College’s Board of Trustees approved purchases of training equipment and furnishings for VC’s William Wood Building.
Renovations to the William Wood Building, which houses VC’s instrumentation, electronics technology and welding courses, began last August and are expected to be completed by June. Classes are expected to begin in the updated facility this fall.
“We are excited with the progress of the William Wood Building renovations that will greatly enhance our industrial training facilities and provide the latest state-of-the-art technology for our students,” said Betsy Crane, dean of VC’s Division of Career and Technical Education. “This will also allow us to increase enrollment in our welding courses and offer unique spaces for our instrumentation and electronics technology labs.”
The $4.75 million project is part of Victoria College’s three-phase expansion for its industrial trades programs. In 2019, Victoria College received a $3.8 million grant from the U.S. Commerce Department’s Economic Development Administration that will pay for 80 percent of the phase two renovations and equipment.
Among the equipment purchased with the EDA grant funds were 39 new welding machines and a state-of-the-art filtration system that will be utilized in the renovated welding labs. Also through the EDA grant, VC purchased six new Amatrol learning systems that will be used to train instrumentation students to work on industrial chemical analyzers in response to industry standards. Furnishings, funded separately, will include computer desks, nesting tables, chairs and furniture for a student lounge.
Crane said the new equipment and furniture will be delivered over the summer.
“This state-of-the-art equipment will increase our ability to have our students workforce-ready by the time they leave our programs,” Crane said. “We continue to work with our industry partners to make sure the training students receive at VC meets or aligns with their standards.”
Registration is underway for VC’s summer and fall semesters. Courses and labs that will resume in the renovated Wood Building during the fall semester include:
- AC/DC Motor Control
- Advanced Shielded Metal Arc Welding
- Application of Industrial Automatic Control
- Digital Fundamentals
- Electricity Principles
- Instrumentation Calibration
- Introduction to Gas Metal Arc Welding
- Introduction to Layout & Fabrication
- Microprocessors
- Principles of Industrial Measurements
- Solid State Circuits
- Welding Fundamentals
For information on Victoria College’s industrial trades offerings, call (361) 573-3291.