October 2001
Crossroads Academy - The Vision Is Now Reality
Crossroads Academy officially opened its doors to the residents of Marshall County in August 2001. The computerized learning center began holding classes on August 21st with the Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer (MCSE) class that is being offered this school year to eighteen high school students from throughout the county. One week later, an Ancilla College MCSE course started as well.
The opening of Crossroads is the starting point for the vision of about thirty area businessmen and educators who have worked on the steering committee over the past two years. In early 2001, the committee secured a Build Indiana grant to build the offices and classrooms. This facility at 1800 Jim Neu Drive, houses the academy along with the new WorkOne Center. In July, the group hired Greg Renz to be the Executive Director of Crossroads. Since July, Renz has been busy getting the facility ready to be occupied, as well as working with the instructors to develop the classes for the fall.
The academy consists of two large classrooms. One classroom is equipped with twenty tower computers situated around the outside of the room. The workstations use flat screen monitors to allow for plenty of desktop space. The second classroom houses fifteen notebook computers on tables that can be laid out in multiple configurations. Both classrooms are equipped with a wireless network, and the facility has a wireless connection to the Internet.
"While the one classroom is rather permanent in terms of how it is set up, we felt it would be important to keep the second classroom re-configurable. This will allow us to utilize that classroom for meetings as well as classes." In addition to the classrooms, there are about two thousand square feet of unfinished space. "I already have plans for what we could do with this space as part of an expansion," said Renz. “We plan to aggressively pursue additional grants and donations to help us get the funding necessary to finish out the facility and to purchase additional peripheral equipment and furnishings.
In addition to the Build Indiana grant, Crossroads has been supported by a number of different organizations. Financial partners for the academy include Purdue University, WorkOne, PIDCO, Plymouth High School, Ancilla College and North Central Area Vocational Cooperative. "We really appreciate the support we have received from these organizations. We need to continue to pursue strategic partnerships with businesses, educational institutions and charitable organizations to help support our operating budget," said Renz.
The October class schedule (see enclosed insert) focuses on basic computer instruction and Microsoft Office classes. "We feel that given the popularity of the Microsoft Office software, that was a good place to start," said Renz. “We have included a survey form with this newsletter that will allow us to get input from the business community on ideas for future classes. We are open to offering any class as long as the student count will support the cost”. Plans for the future include development of customized computer classes for individual businesses as well as offering open computer time for students during their holiday break. "Our high speed Internet access, through the DNS online wireless connection, opens up a lot of possibilities to offer web-based instruction or classes that utilize the Internet."
"I'm really excited about having a facility like this in Marshall County" said Renz. "Crossroads will provide an opportunity for county residents to get quality, reasonably priced computer instruction right here in Plymouth. With our notebook computers, we will also be able to take our classes 'on the road' to other communities such as Argos, Bourbon Bremen, Culver and LaPaz."
Crossroads is planning to hold a technology fair on Wednesday, November 7th from noon until 7:00 PM. "The board and I discussed the idea of having an open house for the public and then the idea of a combination open house and technology fair was discussed," said Renz. "We look forward to having a program that will appeal to business owners in the county as well as the general public." The technology fair will feature speakers from local companies talking about current issues in technology. The open house/technology fair will be free to the public. Refreshments will be served throughout the day and drawings will be held for door prizes. Additional information on the technology fair will be available in the newspaper and on the web site (www.crossroadsacademy.com).
survey printout
Crossroads Academy
1800 Jim Neu Drive
(just west of BPC Manufacturing)
Plymouth , IN 46563
Phone: (219) 936-8834
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