Shannon also announced that the University of Missouri-St. Louis will provide upper level undergraduate and graduate education programs at the new campus.

"St. Louis Community College and the University of Missouri-St. Louis educate more area residents than any other institutions in the region," said Thomas George, UMSL chancellor. "This partnership further signifies our commitment to fulfill our mission as public institutions providing citizens with efficient, quality higher education."

Dolores Gunn, M.D., president of the SLCC Board of Trustees, said the college also looks forward to establishing partnerships with local business and community organizations.

"These relationships are invaluable to our institution and to the students we prepare to enter and strengthen the local work force," Gunn said. "Ultimately, these relationships will enable us to establish ourselves in this area as a true 'community' college."

St. Louis County Executive Charlie Dooley, Lori Payne, a student at the college's West County Education Center, and Paul Wentzien, president of the St. Louis Community College Foundation Board of Directors, also spoke.

The college in 1998 purchased 66 acres in Wildwood at an approximate cost of $3.9 million for construction of the new campus. The decision to purchase land was the result of discussions concerning population migration toward Eureka and Pacific, about six miles southwest of the current site of the
West County Education Center at Clayton and Kehrs Mill Road.

The West County Education Center originally opened in 1984 in leased space in the Citicorp Building at Clayton and Clarkson roads. As enrollments increased, the center in 1989 moved to its present facility at the Barn at Lucerne. The college has leased 25,500 square feet of space at the barn since then.

Since opening more than 20 years ago, enrollment has quadrupled; 70-75 percent of West County students are residents of the areas surrounding the facility. Recent statistics revealed that an average of 63.6 percent of the 25-and-older population in zip codes immediately surrounding the site have not completed a college degree. The new campus will serve one of the fastest growing areas in the college's service area. By 2006, growth in West County is estimated to be 13,663.

The campus will be constructed in three fully functional stages. The initial building, 73,000 square feet, will house high-tech classrooms and labs, offices, student services, lounges, a bookstore, multipurpose room, and rooms set up to use sophisticated presentation and Web-based technologies that will allow faculty to help stimulate different learning styles and clarify difficult concepts. It also will provide high-speed access by cable as well as provide wireless connectivity within and around
the campus site.

The West County campus will offer general transfer studies, career programs, customized training for area businesses and industries, developmental and retraining education, distance learning and telecourse delivery. College officials are exploring partnerships with higher education institutions as
well as K-12 school districts.

The campus will serve up to 6,000 students. Initial construction cost is estimated at $23 million.

In an effort to reduce the building's impact on the environment and community, the college is pursuing LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification. LEED emphasizes state-of-the-art strategies for sustainable site development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials selection and indoor environmental quality. The most prominent feature will be greenroof technology. Greenroofs combine plant technology, hydraulic engineering and architecture to create an aesthetically pleasing and environmentally sustainable rooftop surface.