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One local institution is not only surviving the current economic crisis—it's thriving. Genesee Community College set a new record for enrollment at the start of this past school year. Now, the Batavia-based college is gearing up to erect a new campus center in Lima.

From the press release:

Genesee Community College will open a new campus center on Rochester Street (Route 15A), north of Lima, President Stuart Steiner announced Friday, February 6th.

The new Center, near the corner of Rochester Street and Gale Road, will replace the campus center currently located in Lakeville. The new structure will be about 9,000 square feet and, unlike the Lakeville building, will contain a multi-disciplinary science lab.

Over the next several weeks, the College will contract with a private developer to construct the new center. With an aggressive construction schedule, the College hopes to occupy the building for the fall semester, Dr. Steiner said.

A College task force examined many possible sites in northern Livingston County for the new center. The task force recommended the Lima location to best serve students, Dr. Steiner said. "We believe that the greatest concentration of northern Livingston County students attending Genesee in the years ahead will be from that sector of the county," Dr. Steiner said. "Just as important, the Lima location is quite accessible to students living across northern Livingston County."

The size of the Lima parcel will give Genesee the opportunity to expand the Center in the future if enrollment outgrows the building, Dr. Steiner noted.

The center will house technology-equipped classrooms, a student computer lab, and will be electronically linked to the College library and other College services. A wide range of courses will be offered at the Lima Center, and students will be able to obtain academic advising, financial aid assistance, and other services from Center staff. The Lima Campus Center will also be a focal point for business training offered through The BEST Center (Genesee's workforce education division), non-credit classes, and community events, Dr. Steiner said.

The current recession has prompted great public recognition of the value of Genesee and other community colleges, Dr. Steiner noted: "Community colleges now serve more than half of all students in the State University of New York, and a growing number of students and families now make community colleges their top higher education choice. At Genesee, we've become recognized for classroom excellence, small classes, state-of-the-art technology, and transfer and career programs that bring students the results they need. We believe the new Lima Center will bring top-notch education to even more Livingston County students, and make a very positive impact on the well-being of Livingston County."

More than 900 Livingston County residents attended credit classes at Genesee Community College last year.