Last Updated on May 10, 2018 by cassnetwork
KOKOMO Ind. – Northern Indiana Public Service Company (NIPSCO) has kicked off the community effort to support the transformation of Ivy Tech Community College’s Kokomo Campus with a $25,000 donation. The company’s donation to the “The Time is Now” capital campaign also includes future energy efficiency incentives and upgrades.
The gift was announced Thursday, May 10, at the May meeting of the Ivy Tech Community College Kokomo Region Board of Trustees.
“We are very grateful to NIPSCO for stepping up as the first donor in our campaign to gather community support to complete Ivy Tech’s ambitious make-over of the Kokomo Campus,” said Dean McCurdy, chancellor of Ivy Tech Kokomo. “The gift illustrates the value NIPSCO places in its partnership with Ivy Tech to create a better future for our communities.”
Larry Graham, executive director of communications and public affairs for NIPSCO, said the utility company understands the importance of Ivy Tech’s plan to transform its aging facilities into a modern, state-of-the-art campus.
“As Indiana’s community college, Ivy Tech is a major driver of economic improvement in Indiana,” Graham said. “With up-to-date facilities, classrooms, and laboratories conveniently arranged on a comfortable, pedestrian-friendly campus, the new Kokomo Campus will become a magnet for Hoosiers who want to improve their lives and their families’ lives.”
The goal of “The Time is Now” campaign is to gather $3 million in community philanthropic support that will be added to a $40 million appropriation in state funding approved by the Indiana General Assembly to complete the $43 million project.
The project will benefit through NIPSCO’s Energy Efficiency Program. Under the program, business customers can utilize incentives to help offset the cost of implementing energy-efficient technologies. In addition to reduced energy consumption, the company says further benefits of participation include enhanced equipment performance, extended life expectancy of equipment, and reduced maintenance and cost of ownership.
Energy efficiency upgrades also can have a positive effect on the environment by decreasing air pollution and environmental damage. Under the program, Ivy Tech will replace current boilers with high-efficiency boilers to use less natural gas resulting in significant cost savings and reducing the carbon footprint. In addition, demand control ventilation will be added to control air quality throughout the buildings.
Further illustrating the company’s commitment to the Ivy Tech project, Karen McCoy, public affairs manager at NIPSCO and a 1989 graduate of Ivy Tech Kokomo, is serving as chair of the “Kokomo Campus Transformation: The Time Is Now” leadership team.
“With this project, we have an incredible opportunity to redefine Ivy Tech as an educational leader, an economic development power, and an innovator in meeting workforce needs in north central Indiana,” McCoy said when the leadership team was announced.
Ivy Tech’s Kokomo Campus has been serving the community for more than 40 years, with a history of providing educational programming to prepare a skilled workforce for the community. During this time, the Kokomo Campus expanded beyond its 1976 “Main Building,” acquired new and repurposed buildings around the city, and renovated space – all to accommodate changing needs and growth – without a major facilities investment for more than 25 years. The transformation project will result in a centralized, cohesive campus where students can walk to classes, participate in student life, and get any service they need in one location.
For information about the capital campaign and the campus transformation plans, contact Kelly Karickhoff, executive director of resource development for Ivy Tech Kokomo, at kkarickhoff@ivytech.edu or 765-252-5501.
SOURCE: News release from Ivy Tech Community College Kokomo Region