According to Nacco, the former Quaker Oats employees “are receiving free classes as dislocated workers through the American Job Center and Vermilion County Works. I’ve seen them matriculated in a wide range of programs —including healthcare, science and liberal arts — that lead to an associate and then transfer to a bachelor’s degree. As for Career and Technical programs like welding, HVAC, and mechatronics, we see some who are taking those classes, but most have enrolled in CDL/tractor trailer which is a six-week program that leads to a Class A license and great pay that includes big signing bonuses and a reported $70,000 in annual income.”
THE FOLLOWING IS A NEWS-GAZETTE STORY BY JENNIFER BAILEY
DANVILLE — First-day Danville Area Community College enrollment and credit hour numbers are up.
Fall semester classes started Monday and DACC President Stephen Nacco reports that credit hours are up 14 percent compared to fall 2023.
First-day credit hours are 20,219. For community colleges, credit hours are used for figuring state reimbursement and tuition revenue.
“As for headcount, our total is 2,221, which is 2.5 percent higher than last fall,” Nacco also reports.
“What’s significant about the small headcount increase is that we’ve got roughly the same number of students but they’re taking more classes. Besides yielding more revenue, what’s really important about students taking more classes is that they’re keeping on track toward graduation. Our chief goal has always been to increase our graduation rate, and we’d love to keep raising the bar here at DACC and once again set a new record for our graduation rate. Last year, we established a new record at 45.4 percent,” he said.
Nacco also noted that more than 100 of DACC’s students are former Quaker Oats employees.
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