Valencia College: An Economic Driver For The Future of Poinciana
On Monday May 11, 2015 Dr. Kathleen Plinske, President of Valencia College
Osceola and Poinciana Campuses provided a community update on the status of
Valencia College plans to build a new campus in Poinciana. The timing of the
future creation of the Poinciana Valencia is totally dependent on Florida State
Budget decisions. The sooner the state can provide funding to support the
building of the Poinciana campus the sooner the campus can be built. Best case
scenario would be 2017 if all the funding requests are approved.
Dr. Plinske spent most of her presentation describing why Valencia made the
decision to build the new campus in Poinciana.
The biggest benefit to the Poinciana Community will be economic. Poinciana has
a population of 50,000 persons living with the Poinciana Villages and 80,000
persons living within the greater Poinciana area. Almost 30% of that population
or 24,000 persons are under age 18. Today for those students to attend an
institution of higher learning the Valencia Osceola Campus nearest to Poinciana
represents a daily commute of 60 to 90 minutes each way depending on the time
of day. The bulk of that potential college population lives within a 10 mile radius
of the new Valencia College location.
The map below shows the location of current Valencia students. You can see the
large cluster in Poinciana that today is hampered by the long commute that will
benefit from the new campus location.
By building the new Valencia campus closer to the Poinciana students the
college will better serve the needs of the students and potential students living in
the Poinciana area.
Today this large community boasts the smallest percentage of high school kids
that go on to the next level of education than any of the surrounding cities.
The below chart shows the percentage of high school graduates attending
college in all the Central Florida Counties surrounding Poinciana.
Not only does Osceola County have the smallest percentage of kids going on to
college but Poinciana’s high schools have the smallest percentage of high school
graduates entering college as any high schools in Osceola County. The chart
below show the percentage of kids from Osceola High Schools moving on to
advance their education.
The establishment of the new Poinciana Valencia location will offer the
opportunity to boost both the percentage of Poinciana kids able to pursue the
next level of education beyond high school. It will also provide a significant boost
to the local Poinciana Economy by equipping it kids to achieve a higher level of
earnings.
Not only do Valencia College graduates earn more money that those that choose
not pursue the higher education but for those Valencia graduates going directly
into the job market they claim a placement rate of 95%.
Planned degree programs to be offered for Poinciana Valencia College include
the following degrees;
Valencia also plans to offer partnering with the other higher education institutions
shown below;
Valencia College, with almost 60,000 students statewide has been recognized as
one of the best higher education schools in America.
It offers a guaranteed admission program for Central Florida GED or High School
Graduates with a graduation path that offers guaranteed admission to University
of Central Florida for pursuit of even higher education programs. With tuition
prices running between $1,200 to $1,500 per semester it offers a degree
program costing $6,000 for a 2 year degree. Over half of its students receive
some kind of aid resulting in graduates less burdened with student debt than
most other higher education institutions. It boasts a 95% job placement rate for
its graduates. Studies show an average increase in average lifetime earnings
potential of $470,400 per graduate. The result being that Valencia College offers
its graduates the opportunity for higher lifetime earnings for its graduates.
With 16,000 kids under age 18 living in the Poinciana Villages along Poinciana
will greatly benefit by the addition on a new Valencia College Campus in
Poinciana. The College Board of Trustees has selected Poinciana as the location
for its next expansion. All that stands in the way is the required funding to be
provided by the State of Florida. The residents of Poinciana and especially the
kids are looking to the Florida legislature to support this much needed school of
higher education for Poinciana.
PRFSC wants to thank Dr. Plinske for coming to Poinciana to provide an update
on Valencia College plans for Poinciana. The 26,000 registered voters and
80,000 persons living in the greater Poinciana urge our representatives in the
Polk and Osceola Delegations to do whatever they can to help Valencia College
obtain the funding required from the State of Florida to allow the Poinciana
campus to be built sooner rather than later.