(Ford City, PA) Prospective students “are going to be in awe” while visiting an April 18 open house at BC3 @ Armstrong’s new 15,000-square-foot facility in Ford City, said a borough teen who previously attended Butler County Community College’s additional location in nearby Manor Township.
“It is huge,” said Sophia Klukan, an 18-year-old Ford City resident and BC3 @ Armstrong psychology student. “I got lost in it my first day. And it’s beautiful.”
Prospective students can learn about BC3 @ Armstrong’s affordability and its associate degree programs, and apply free during the open house, scheduled for 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. at 1100 Fourth Ave.
Prospective students can RSVP at BC3.edu/open-house.
"The style and the layout of the college is very modern and it helps us to be more connected with one another.”
BC3 established BC3 @ Armstrong in 2015 in Manor Township – where it occupied 2,000 square feet of dedicated space and shared other areas – and relocated March 13 to Ford City.
The state-of-the-art facility includes, among other areas, up to six classroom spaces, a natural science laboratory and student meeting areas.
“You can sit in the chairs and charge your phone,” Klukan said. “There is room to engage with others and learn together and study. The style and the layout of the college is very modern and it helps us to be more connected with one another.”
BC3 @ Armstrong offers associate degree programs in business administration, general studies and psychology.
“This,” Klukan said, “is the best education I have ever gotten in my life. I have learned so much. Not just from materials out of books, but how to be a better person in my life. How to talk with people. How to talk in front of crowds and be more confident in myself.”
Klukan addressed about 100 people as the student speaker at BC3 @ Armstrong’s ribbon-cutting ceremony April 12.
Without having taken a speech class at BC3 @ Armstrong, Klukan said, “I would have been a nervous wreck.”
A community grand opening followed the ribbon-cutting ceremony.
Guests at BC3 @ Armstrong’s open house can also learn about support services and student activities, and review financial aid opportunities and tuition.
Students can also apply BC3 @ Armstrong’s credits toward a bachelor’s degree at public, private and online four-year colleges and universities.
60% graduated debt-free in 2022
Spring 2023 tuition and fees at regional public four-year universities start at $437.23 per credit for Pennsylvania residents for an in-person course, and start at $374.20 for an online course.
Spring 2023 tuition and fees for Pennsylvania residents attending regional state-related institutions’ branch campuses cost between $582 and $734 per credit for an in-person course, and start at $620 for an online course.
Spring 2023 tuition and fees for students attending BC3 @ Armstrong cost $280 per credit for an in-person course and $305 for an online course.
The BC3 Education Foundation in 2022-2023 has awarded to BC3 students a record $280,000 in scholarships, said Lynn Ismail, the foundation’s assistant director and its financial manager.
Nearly 60 percent of BC3’s Class of 2022 graduated debt-free.
Klukan expects to graduate debt-free from BC3 @ Armstrong in May 2024. Her brother, Christopher, graduated debt-free from BC3 @ Armstrong with an associate degree in general studies in 2020, Klukan said.
“A lot of my boyfriend’s family members are still paying off their college debt, and they already have a family,” Klukan said. “They’re still having repercussions of student loans. I won’t have to stress about it. I won’t have to worry about putting money toward it.
“I’ll be pretty happy with my life and get to move on.”
Klukan plans to become a second-grade teacher and a counselor of children.
Eight No. 1 rankings in state since 2015
Students this fall at BC3 @ Armstrong can also select from associate degree and certificate or workplace certificate virtual programs whose courses will be instructed by BC3 faculty and accessible at any time.
BC3 has been ranked as the No. 1 community college in Pennsylvania eight times since 2015, most recently for 2023 by Niche.com.
Sources in Niche’s August report included the National Center for Education Statistics’ Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System; the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Post-Secondary Education and College Scorecard data; the Brookings Institution, a Washington, D.C., nonprofit public policy and research organization; and its college student survey.
BC3’s fall semester begins Aug. 21 with a 15-week Session 1 and a five-week mostly online Fast Track 1.
The college’s 10-week Session 2 begins Sept. 18. Fast Track 2 starts Sept. 25 and Fast Track 3, Oct. 30.
