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FROM THE PRESIDENT

Dr. Tracy HallGreetings, Southwest Family!

I hope your year is off to a fantastic start. As you know, we are continuing our 2016 Achieving the Dream (ATD) work to Redesign, Reinvent and Reset the Student Experience. This time around, though, we are including our non-credit or workforce students. Learning is learning. So, whether a student enrolls in a credit or workforce program, there should be a seamless career pathway from recruitment to completion and beyond. My thanks to the faculty and staff who are working diligently to revise our ATD process maps to close gaps and identify barriers to student success. 

At a time when some are debating the value of a College education, it is incumbent upon us to continuously reimagine our work so that we remain relevant and continue to meet the needs of the communities we serve. Our work is particularly important in Memphis; a community hard hit by a global pandemic that shone a light on the effects of historical and generational poverty and inequities. As we take this month to honor the lasting legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Civil Rights leaders, sung and unsung during Black History Month, we reaffirm our commitment to equity and the work to eliminate barriers and increase the economic and social mobility of our students and community. 

On April 20, we will officially unveil our reimagined workforce vision at an Open House on the Macon Cove Campus’ Fulton Industrial Building. Thanks to the Tennessee Higher Education Commission (THEC) for an $800,000 grant and a $550,000 Reimagining the Community College Experience grant from the Tennessee Board of Regents (TBR), Southwest is well on our way to fulfilling our Focus 2025 Strategic goal of being the Workforce Solutions Center of Memphis and the Mid-South. 

I believe our goal of being the go-to institution for workforce training is realistic and attainable.  Given our expansive footprint, we have workforce programs and community connections already in place across Shelby and Fayette counties:  

Southwest Workforce Programs 

  • Macon Cove Campus: Mechanical and Engineering Technologies, Robotics, IT, Hospitality Management, Automotive and Workforce Development
  • Union Avenue Campus: Allied Health Science and Nursing, Medical District High School,  Performing and Fine Arts
  • Whitehaven Center: Funeral Services Education 
  • Maxine A. Smith Center: Cyber Security and Aviation Operations Technology 
  • Elbert T. Gill Jr. Center:  General education courses leading to certificate and degree programs
  • Somerville Center:  Partnership with UT Martin for general education leading to certificate and degree programs 
  • Millington Center: Proximity to Naval base community and local workforce needs 

This renewed focus on workforce development is not a new mission; it is why community colleges were created more than a century ago and why they will remain relevant well into the foreseeable future. We are building on the good work we have already done, and we are committed to helping our students reimagine their futures.  

Stay tuned for more details and updates about  Southwest---The Workforce Solutions Center--- throughout the year. I hope to see you at the Open House! 

It’s going to be a great year!

Dr. Tracy Hall
  
Dr. Tracy D. Hall
President