20220626-CARROLLLIVING - Flipbook - Page 24
Graduates file out of Carroll Community College’s commencement ceremony at McDaniel College in Westminster May 25. PHOTO BY DYLAN SLAGLE
music and theater productions are scheduled
throughout the year.
In the fall of 2019, the college’s sports
program began with men’s and women’ soccer
and men’s and women’s cross country teams. In
the spring of 2020, men’s and women’s lacrosse
and track and field premiered. Golf will make
its premiere for both men and women in the
spring of 2023. A member of the National
Junior College Athletic Association, the school
teams compete in the Maryland Junior College
Athletic Conference. Its mascot is the Lynx.
“Our athletic programs support the College’s
mission and values, providing students the
opportunity to grow their leadership skills and
practice teamwork, setting them up for future
success both in and outside the classroom,” said
Bill Kelvey, Carroll Lynx athletic director, in an
email. “I am so proud of our teams, as well as
our eight All-Academic team members, who
earned a GPA above 3.6.”
Carroll County commissioners’ fiscal 2023
budget includes $2.4 million of one-time
money for the college to construct a new sports
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complex on its campus. While the amount is
half what the school estimated it would cost,
it would allow for the construction of a turf
field that could be used by the general public.
“We are working with the Carroll County
Board of Commissioners to possibly fund a
renovation project of our competition field to
an artificial turf surface, and add an NCAA
regulation ¼ mile track, lighting, and spectator
seating,” said James Ball, the college’s president.
“We are hopeful the Commissioners will
approve their fiscal package for 2023 to include
funding for half the project’s estimated costs.”
“From the beginning … the community has
been reaching out talking about turf fields,”
said Commissioner President Ed Rothstein,
a District 5 Republican. “Westminster is a
great location because it’s in the center [of the
county]. … I think there needs to be more as
we move forward but at least this will give us
something.”
The college’s strategic plan, Compass 2025,
is “the guiding force for the future growth,”
according to Ball, and includes five priorities:
1. Promoting student success from initial
contact to completion of their program;
2. Expanding career and economic
development, including the introduction of
programs to meet emerging trends and attract
new student populations;
3. Promoting diversity and global citizenship,
preparing students for a diverse, increasingly
connected global workforce;
4. Assessing institutional excellence,
ensuring that programs continue to deliver a
rigorous academic experience;
5. Practicing effective resource management,
to continue its mission: Empowering Learners.
Changing Lives. Building Community.
“We know that we have to continuously
improve and stay ahead of the curve in
preparing our students for the jobs of the
future.” Ball wrote. “Our investments in
technology, state of the art equipment, and
faculty and staff training programs are critical
to remaining ‘the jewel of Carroll County’ as
well as the county’s #1 choice for educational
opportunities.”