Aspect International Language schools is the first outside company to ever operate on campus, and have moved in to six of the port-a-cabins on East campus.
The proposal was approved at the Board of Trustees meeting on June 26, and the final contract was drawn up shortly after. The contract enables City College to receive $40 per week per student from Aspect.
At present, only four students are enrolled in Aspect, but the contract states that until April of 2004, Aspect must pay for 36 students, and then from April 2004 to September 2005 Aspect must pay for a minimum of 60 students.
“Apart from the rent, the real advantage for City College is that Aspect are recruiting students from all over the world, and coming to the City College campus, and seeing how great it is,” said Paolo Buckelew, dean of educational programs.
“Then when they are done at Aspect, we hope they will want to come to City College.”
It came about when Aspect approached City College with a proposal to rent out the space in the unused port-a-cabins.
The proposal with the agreement that it would be Aspect’s responsibility to clean and prepare the cabins as classrooms, as well as paying rent.
Originally the unused cabins were going to be used to house the Life Fitness center during the upcoming remodel, but according to Buckelew, the floors in the cabins were too weak to hold the machines and weights.
“We were originally going to say no to Aspect,” said Buckelew. “But we realized that we had six cabins being used for storage, and we would need them clearing out when we remodel the Political Science building in a few years.”
According to Buckelew, this way the college is receiving rent for the unused rooms, as well as having someone else responsible for making the classrooms useable.
“It’s good for us, and it’s good for Aspect,” said Buckelew.
“The rooms are all set up and we have six students right now but we are getting more every week,” said Aspect’s director, Laura Cook. “The students are all very happy with the location as well as using the facilities such as the cafeteria and the Life Fitness center.”
Buckelew said they foresaw the problems that might be faced with parking. All the teachers at Aspect park at the harbor, and the students are all in homestays and hence do not drive to college.
Aspect also runs it’s own computer network and doesn’t encroach on the City College’s internet provider.
“The students are encouraged to get involved in other City College classes as well,” said Buckelew. “They use some of the college’s facilities, such at the cafeteria. It’s not like we keep them locked in that one area.”