Ivy Tech Greencastle part of $285 million campaign

Through a multi-million-dollar campaign, Ivy Tech Community College is providing an opportunity for communities across the state to help strengthen its impact. The Greencastle campus is part of this effort.

Community leaders gathered for an event at the campus Thursday evening to celebrate the public launch of this $285 million effort, which is aimed at encouraging investment into the institution and its students.

The campaign syncs with Ivy Tech’s strategic priorities: Providing seamless educational pathways; making an Ivy Tech education accessible for all and minimizing barriers; and meeting current workforce needs through training, programming and scholarships.

Besides it being its first-ever statewide campaign, Invest IN Ivy Tech is the largest philanthropic drive in the history of Ivy Tech and the foundation which supports it. Its west-central Indiana region is set to account for $12 million of the total effort, of which $6.6 million has been raised.

The campaign overall is on strong footing, as a little over $200 million has been contributed by about 10,000 individuals and organizations. It is expected to be complete in 2023, which will mark the 60th anniversary of Ivy Tech’s founding.

Locally, the Putnam County Community Foundation has pledged to match $2 for every dollar, up to $100,000, donated to the Greencastle campus between now and Dec. 31.

“The last year-and-a-half has been tough on the education system at all levels, and Ivy Tech is no exception,” Community Development Director Dean Gambill said. “We need a strong Ivy Tech Greencastle site to support where the community is going. The Community Foundation is glad to be able to partner, and to encourage our family to continue to support and step up.”

Having only been on the job for six weeks, Site Director Carol Whitesel is still getting a feel for how the Greencastle campus can reach out. However, she said its recent alignment with the Terre Haute campus, as well as its small size, helps it meet the needs of the community.

“(It is) a plethora of resources that are just gonna really support our Greencastle campus,” Whitesel said. “We have a very small team here, and you guys probably know a lot of the people who actually work here locally. We’re able to give a personal touch with our students. That’s what I think the beauty of a small campus is.”

For her part, Ivy Tech Director of Development Lauren Arnold provided that one of out every 53 jobs was supported by Ivy Tech and its programs in Fiscal Year 2018-19. This accounts for its service region which includes Putnam as well as Clay, Greene, Knox, Parke, Sullivan, Vermillion and Vigo counties.

Arnold added that the average Ivy Tech associate-degree graduate sees annual earnings more than $10,000 higher than a person with a high school diploma or an equivalent. As such, she said, Ivy Tech has a significant impact not just on students, but on the local economy.

“Quite literally, Ivy Tech students are the future of Indiana, of Putnam County and of Greencastle,” Arnold professed.