Janet Kozachek joined throngs of visitors in touring Orangeburg-Calhoun Technical College's new building Wednesday. "This building is very comfortable. I love the colors and the arrangements. Everything's clean and fresh and very hopeful for the future," said Kozachek, whose oil paintings are displayed on the second floor.

Grand-opening ceremonies featured a ribbon-cutting, remarks by dignitaries, songs by the college choir, refreshments, tours and the announcement of a new name for O-C Tech's first new building since 1987.

During construction, it was referred to as the Student Services Building, but Dr. Anne Crook, president, announced that henceforth it will be known as the Student Life and Community Center.

With its distinctive two-story glassed-in rotunda, the Student Life and Community Center is the most easily identified building on the campus and is destined to be the college's signature building.

Up on the second floor, visitors to the Frank P. Tourville Sr. Technology Learning Lab were impressed with the 88 brand-new, fully loaded, state-of-the-art computers.

"It's got anything you would need," said the Rev. Dr. Tommy Huggins of St. Matthews, who wasted no time in testing one of the Dell's crisp, colorful LCD monitors.

"It's like a dream room!" exclaimed Georgia Montgomery. "And the community can come in and use these?" she asked incredulously. Yes, she was assured. "Do I have to pay a fee?" she queried. Only for printouts, not to surf the Internet, was the reply. "Oh, that is really, really great!"

The computer lab is named for the founder of Zeus Industrial Products. It will be available days and evenings to students and the general public.

Other features of the 37,000-square-foot, $5.3 million facility include an executive boardroom, community training rooms, a community education suite and a dining and reception hall which will serve breakfast, lunch and snacks.

The building will house admissions, student records, financial aid, job placement, advisement, tutoring and assessment services -- offices that until now have been spread across campus in several buildings.

Centralizing student services will better accommodate the demands of a growing student enrollment while freeing up space elsewhere for use as classrooms and faculty offices.

The Continuing Education Department and The Center for Accelerated Technology Training will move to the new building. These areas serve the needs of new, expanding and existing industries and businesses.

In the future, 60 percent of the work force will need a two-year degree, but only 32 percent meet that qualification now, said state Sen. John W. Matthews Jr. of Bowman. "We've got a long way to go."

The good news is that the state's technical education system is designed to provide tomorrow's workers with the technical skills they will need, Matthews said.

Larry Patrick, chairman of the O-C Tech Area Commission, said he has been receiving congratulations from friends on "your" new building. He said he reminded them that it's "our" new building.

O-C Tech is "a community college," Patrick told the audience. "Your college is here to help meet the needs of the community," and the new building will be "a tremendous asset to the college."

Patrick thanked the multitudes of donors who contributed the $1,064,000 in matching funds to qualify for $4,256,000 in 1999 Capital Improvement Bond funds to pay for the facility.

The building will "become a symbol of this community's commitment ... to provide quality education and a trained work force," said state Rep. Harry Ott of St. Matthews.

John Rickenbacker, chairman of Orangeburg County Council, thanked the college's commissioners "for their vision and commitment to make this a reality."

"This building will send an impressive message" underscoring that "economic development is our number one priority," Rickenbacker said, adding that it took "cooperation between government and business to make this happen."

Also in attendance were David Summers, chairman of Calhoun County Council; Earl Brown, representing U.S. Rep. Joe Wilson; state Sen. Brad Hutto, and many other dignitaries, as well as representatives of the contractor, C.F. Evans Construction of Orangeburg, and the architectural firm, Enwright Associates Inc. of Greenville.

Major donors

Diamond

-- Calhoun County

-- Orangeburg County

-- Frank P. Tourville Sr.

-- The Regional Medical Center of Orangeburg & Calhoun Counties

Platinum

-- Electrolux

-- SCE&G

Gold

-- The Baroody family / Orangeburg Distributors

-- Coca-Cola

-- William B. Cox

-- Gary W. Dietrich

-- Fairey Chevrolet-Cadillac

-- Gulbrandsen

-- Sudhir D. Patel

-- South Carolina Bank & Trust

-- Super Sod

-- Superior Motors/Superior Honda

-- The Times and Democrat

-- Voridian

Silver

-- Bob and Nancy Ayers

-- Herb and Kathy Bradley

-- A.L. Brewington

-- Anne Crook

-- Decolam

-- Dawes Edwards

-- Clarence Evans

-- Ozzie and Elsie Fogle

-- Edward S. Griffith

-- Retta Guthrie

-- Koyo Corporation of USA

-- Joseph J. Miller Foundation

-- Orangeburg National Bank

-- Larry and Pauline Patrick

-- D.L. Scurry Foundation

-- Shady Grove Plantation and Nursery

-- John and Susan Dukes Webber

-- John O. Wesner III

-- Whatley Toyota

T&D Staff Writer Lee Hendren can be reached by e-mail at lhendren@timesanddemocrat.com or by phone at 803-533-5552.

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