(Ford City, PA) Prospective students can explore BC3 @ Armstrong’s associate degree programs, and learn about the transferability of its credits and its affordability compared to Pennsylvania’s public four-year and state-related institutions during a fall open house Nov. 1.
BC3 @ Armstrong’s open house is scheduled for 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. at 104 Armstrong St., Ford City, in the NexTier Adult Learning Center.
BC3 @ Armstrong will waive the $25 application fee for prospective students who apply for admission at the open house. Prospective students can RSVP at apply.BC3.edu/open-house.
Prospective students at BC3 @ Armstrong’s open house can also explore instructional formats, tour classrooms and the facility, review financial aid opportunities and tuition, and learn about support services and student activities.
BC3 @ Armstrong’s selection of two-year transfer programs features business administration, general studies and psychology.
Approximately 60 percent of BC3 students this fall are enrolled in transfer programs, according to Sharla Anke, BC3’s assistant dean of institutional research and planning.
General studies, business administration and psychology are among the top transfer programs of all BC3 students in the fall 2022 semester, Anke said.
BC3 @ Armstrong students can apply credits earned toward a bachelor’s degree at public, private and online four-year colleges and universities.
Students who complete a BC3 @ Armstrong degree in business administration or in psychology can transfer all credits to a parallel program and with junior standing to any Pennsylvania public four-year institution.
Students who complete a BC3 @ Armstrong degree in business administration, general studies or psychology can transfer all credits to a parallel program at any Penn State University commonwealth campus.
Students can also take most pre-nursing courses at BC3 @ Armstrong and finish their degree in Nursing, R.N., at BC3’s main campus in Butler Township. They can also take courses in social work, criminology and business management.
Elected officials announce $2M grant
BC3 @ Armstrong is the newest of the five additional locations Butler County Community College has created to serve underrepresented counties in Pennsylvania with higher education.
A state-of-the-art BC3 @ Armstrong facility in Ford City is expected to be completed in early 2023 on a two-acre lot where Ford City Junior-Senior High School once stood.
The 15,000-square-foot facility will accommodate an enrollment increase as high as 426 percent since BC3 @ Armstrong in Manor Township opened in 2015.
BC3 @ Armstrong in Ford City will include up to six classroom spaces, a natural science laboratory and student meeting space. It will also incorporate in its lobby the sandstone keystone of the former junior-senior high school.
The facility in Ford City that will allow the college to offer sufficient instructional space and enhance current program offerings in Armstrong County has received a $2 million state Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program grant, elected officials announced Oct. 26.
The funding follows a $1.75 million state RACP grant the project received in January, according to state Sen. Joe Pittman and state Rep. Abby Major, who succeeded former state Rep. Jeff Pyle.
Pyle was instrumental in helping to secure the $1.75 million state RACP grant.
“The new BC3 facility will address a critical need for dedicated classrooms, learning space, computer rooms and a science and chemistry laboratory,” Pittman said in a statement announcing the $2 million grant. “This state-of-the-art facility will not only benefit students, but it will be a major boost to downtown invigoration efforts, increase tax revenue and help to market Armstrong County.”
"This state-of-the-art facility will not only benefit students, but it will be a major boost to downtown invigoration efforts, increase tax revenue and help to market Armstrong County.”
Pyle retired in March 2021 because of health reasons. He passed away in September.
“BC3 was Rep. Jeff Pyle’s vision,” Major said in Pittman’s statement. “I’m pleased we are able to assist with making this project a reality. While I had hoped he would be present for the grand opening in the future, his memory will live on in this college campus.”
Pittman’s 41st senatorial district includes Armstrong and Indiana counties, and parts of Butler and Westmoreland counties. Major’s 60th legislative district includes parts of Armstrong, Butler and Indiana counties.
Community college students can save about $20K
Students who attend a community college for their first two years can save an estimated $20,000 on the cost of higher education, according to the Pennsylvania Commission for Community Colleges.
Tuition and fees for face-to-face classes this fall for BC3 students from Armstrong County cost $280 per credit.
The most recent tuition and fees published by regional public four-year universities cost between $437.23 and $532.81 per credit for Pennsylvania residents for an in-person class. Tuition and fees for Pennsylvania residents attending regional state-related institutions’ branch campuses this fall cost between $582 and $734 per credit for an in-person class.
The average student-loan debt for Pennsylvania’s Class of 2019 was $38,521, according to a January report in LendEDU, a website that provides comparisons for loans, credit cards and other financial products.
Nearly 60 percent of BC3’s Class of 2022 graduated debt-free.
Brothers laud BC3 @ Armstrong’s affordability
BC3 @ Armstrong students Anthony and Zachary Moore, brothers from Kittanning, said they chose to attend BC3 @ Armstrong because of its affordability and its accessibility.
Each is a graduate of Armstrong Junior-Senior High School, Anthony, 23, in 2018 and Zachary, 21, in 2019.
Anthony is pursuing an associate degree in general studies. After graduating from BC3 @ Armstrong, he plans to transfer to a Pennsylvania public four-year institution to pursue a bachelor’s degree in wildlife biology. He hopes to one day work in a tiger sanctuary.
Zachary is pursuing an associate degree in history in conjunction with BC3’s main campus and an associate degree at BC3 @ Armstrong in psychology. After graduating from BC3, he also plans to transfer to a Pennsylvania public four-year institution to pursue a bachelor’s degree in psychology. He hopes to one day work as a forensic profiler.
BC3 @ Armstrong, Anthony said, “was close, and it was more affordable than other schools. I don’t want to have a whole lot of debt. I wanted to try to mitigate that as much as possible. … I know some students go to more expensive colleges, and it’s probably not as good for them, monetary-wise.
“If that is what they want to do, I am happy they are doing it, but I feel like I made a much better choice going to a community college.”
Zachary and his bother live within a 10-minute drive of BC3 @ Armstrong, which Zachary said he chose because of its location and its affordability.
And, he said, “The instructors are very well-rounded. You get more in-depth time with the teacher and you are able to ask more questions. And the staff there is very kind and welcoming.”
“The teachers there are amazing”
BC3’s student-to-faculty ratio is 11:1.
“Because of the smaller class sizes, the teachers are able to develop a closer relationship with you, and really make sure you are understanding the content,” Anthony said. “The teachers there are amazing. I’m really sad that when I transfer I won’t get to see them anymore.”
"Because of the smaller class sizes, the teachers are able to develop a closer relationship with you, and really make sure you are understanding the content."
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.
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.
Students can also take many health care science courses at BC3 @ Armstrong and finish their associate degrees in medical assistant; Nursing, R.N.; physical therapist assistant; or in technical trades-massage therapy management option on BC3’s main campus. They can also finish their certificates in massage therapy, medical assistant or in practical nursing on BC3’s main campus.
