NWACC's master plan includes housing, classrooms and sports facilities
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Burns Hall at NWACC. Photo: Alex Golden/Axios
Northwest Arkansas's flagship community college wants to add amenities and classroom space — multiplying its indoor space by six — over the next 25 years.
📈 Why it matters: NorthWest Arkansas Community College expects its student body to grow from about 9,000 to 20,000 by 2045, President Dennis Rittle told Axios. And with 95% of its graduates staying in the region, the school plays a major role in filling critical jobs across NWA.
🧑⚕️ Zoom in: A new plan would allow NWACC's registered nursing program to increase by at least 50% as NWA's health care industry skyrockets, Rittle said. The existing program has 200-240 students.
- Most of the new learning spaces would be for the "adaptive workforce."
- "As the needs of the workforce change in the region, all the spaces will continue to adapt," Rittle said, noting the college is seeing increased interest in robotics, AI and data sciences.
⚽️ The intrigue: Plans show increased athletics, recreational and arts offerings, including a black box theater that can host performances, sports facilities and a wellness center with exercise equipment and an Olympic-size pool.
- Planned indoor and outdoor sports facilities would, at minimum, allow the college to handle cross country, track and field, basketball, volleyball, soccer and wrestling.
- Background: NWACC in recent years began its first intercollegiate sports teams — men's and women's teams in cross country and track and field — and hired its first full-time athletic director in 2023. Men's and women's soccer teams are coming next year.
Other planned additions include:
- 🏠 Housing for up to 3,000 residents.
- 🧒 A daycare for students' and employees' children.
- 🍽 Dining and retail.
- 🅿️ Parking garages and repurposed parking lots.
- 🚲 Biking and walking trails throughout the campus.
- 📍 A commons building with a ballroom.
💰 By the numbers: A rough estimate of the entire wishlist is $1.5 billion, NWACC spokesperson April Wallace told Axios, noting the cost is subject to change because many details aren't solidified. The plan is to build over several years.
- Rittle said the school's amount of climate-controlled space would increase from 500,000 square feet to 3 million square feet. The capacity would increase from 12,000 to 30,000 students.
🤲 How it works: The hope is for philanthropy and grants to largely cover construction costs, Rittle said. There is no plan to increase tuition or ask for tax increases to pay for the projects, although more students naturally mean more tuition dollars to pay for continuing costs like more faculty and staff.
- NWACC already owns the land surrounding its existing Bentonville campus, around 130 acres.
- The Walton Family Foundation gave NWACC a $640,000 grant to support the master planning process, including assessing current facilities and design, Kathryn Heller with the foundation confirmed to Axios.
🔮 What's next: Which projects will come first is TBD.