Alamo Colleges Add Training Facility in Kerrville for Welding and Other Technical Programs

With the addition of a new, 10,000-square-foot building, the Greater Kerrville Alamo Community College Center is on track to significantly expand its technical training offerings for students in the Kerrville area. The new facility, located at 1994 Airport Loop Road in Kerrville, is owned by the City of Kerrville and Kerr County, who agreed to lease it to the Alamo Colleges for $1 per year. The building will be used first for welding, forklift and safety training classes; it will be used for other technical workforce training programs as the need arises. Welding classes at the new location will begin in late September.

The expansion of training programs made possible by the availability of the new facility will have a positive economic impact on the Kerrville area. For example, it will allow Fox Tank Company, one of the Kerrville center's business partners, to increase their number of employees from about 15 to around 135. Fox Tank Company builds oil storage tanks and is experiencing an increase in business due to the booming Eagle Ford Shale oil and gas drilling effort. The Eagle Ford Shale project is creating a statewide shortage of welders, and, nationally, there is a shortage of nearly 300,000 welders. The Alamo Colleges received a $304,000 grant from the Texas Workforce Commission to train workers for Fox Tank Company, and is partnering with Workforce Solutions—Alamo in Kerrville in this effort. The grant also includes funding for welding equipment at the new facility.

The Greater Kerrville Alamo Community College Center is operated by the Alamo Colleges in partnership with the Kerrville Independent School District, the Kerr Economic Development Foundation, the City of Kerrville, the Kerrville Area Chamber of Commerce and Workforce Solutions—Alamo. The center provides academic college credit courses, plus occupational training and short-term workforce training programs that connect residents to emerging jobs in demand occupations.

 Alamo Colleges Net Local and National Recognition

The Alamo Colleges continue to receive recognition at both the local and national level for achieving excellence in several areas. Locally, the San Antonio Business Journal selected the Alamo Colleges' Port of San Antonio Project as the “Best Land Deal" for its "2012 Best in Commercial Real Estate" edition. The project involved renovation of a 40,000-square-foot building, situated on 29.68 acres, that was previously a part of Kelly AFB and transferred to the Alamo Colleges by Port San Antonio. It now houses the Alamo Colleges' Workforce Development Center of Excellence, adjacent to St. Philip's College's Southwest Campus.  

In addition, the Hispanic Contractors Association de San Antonio recognized Alamo Colleges with it s Owner of the Year Award, presented at their Excellence through Diversity Awards gala. This award recognizes Alamo Colleges for exceptional outreach and for fostering the success of Historically Underutilized, Small, Minority and Women-Owned businesses.  

Nationally, the Alamo Colleges' Finance and Fiscal Services Department received two awards from the Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA). For the third year in a row, they were awarded the Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting for the comprehensive annual financial report (CAFR) prepared for the fiscal year ending August 31, 2011. According to the GFOA, “The Certificate of Achievement is the highest form of recognition in governmental accounting and financial reporting, and its attainment represents a significant accomplishment by a government and its management.”  

For the second year in a row, the GFOA awarded the Alamo Colleges the Distinguished Budget Presentation. To receive this accolade, the budget document was required to meet fourteen mandatory criteria and demonstrate proficiency as a policy document, a financial plan, an operations guide and a communication device.

Also at the national level, the Alamo Colleges' Purchasing and Contract Administration department was awarded the Achievement of Excellence in Procurement award for 2012 by the National Procurement Institute (NPI).  This prestigious award is earned by those organizations that demonstrate excellence by obtaining a high score based on standardized criteria. The criteria are designed to measure innovation, professionalism, productivity, e-procurement, and leadership attributes of the procurement organization. 

Awards and recognition such as these may be expected to continue as the Alamo Colleges pursues its vision of "being the best in the nation in student success and performance excellence."