NICC to host open house for new Student Center

CALMAR - Northeast Iowa Community College is inviting all community members to a ribbon-cutting ceremony and open house for the college's new Student Center on April 5.

The ribbon cutting begins at 2 p.m., followed by an open house and tours of the facility through 6 p.m. The events are free and open to the public.

The new 38,900-square-foot Student Center opened in January 2011. Voters' support for the NICC $35 million bond levy funded construction of the $7.2 million facility. The building houses college offices and student resources, including admissions, advising, counseling, financial aid, the registrar and the adult transition offices, student life, TRiO-Upward Bound, the library and the bookstore. Common areas offer study areas for students.

As an alternative to a conventional heating and cooling system, NICC installed a geothermal energy system in 2010 to provide heating and cooling energy for the new structure. Through geothermal energy, NICC estimates annual energy costs for heating and cooling would drop from $35,000 to $12,000, for an annual savings of $23,000.

Over 20 contractors, many of them local firms, completed the Student Center.