SCF seeks funding to start new campus in Parrish

State College of Florida is nearing a milestone in the long-term project to establish itself in Manatee County’s burgeoning communities.

When it developed a strategic plan in 2015, the college‘s top priority was to increase its presence “in the rapid growth area east of I-75 and north of the Manatee River.”

It solidified that goal two years later with the purchase of 74 acres in Parrish, at 11680 Erie Road.

Now, state Rep. Tommy Gregory, R-Sarasota, has filed a request for $9.5 million to help SCF embark on the first of three project phases. If approved, his request would go toward the $25 million that’s needed to construct a 60,000 square-foot building over the next several years.

Gregory said the campus would provide a convenient, affordable education to future students, who might otherwise leave to study and work in other counties.

“We definitely want to retain those talented students,” he said. “They want the education — let’s provide it for them and let’s keep them here.”

His request would accompany $5 million raised by SCF, bringing the initial budget to $14.5 million. The college would need another $10.5 million to complete Phase One, and that money would likely come from subsequent requests and fundraising, said Carol Probstfeld, the college’s president.

“It goes on until we have what we need to make the project come to fruition,” she said. “Construction costs continue to go up, so the sooner we can get our hands around all of this, the better.”

According to her estimate, the first phase — a large building, along with the necessary entryway and parking — would take three to five years to build. The college drafted several concepts, but the final look and requirements of Phase Two and Phase Three are currently unknown.

“I can’t speculate on that,” Probstfeld said. “I think it will depend on how Manatee County and the surrounding communities grow and evolve over the next several decades.”

Probstfeld said the initial construction may benefit 800 to 1,500 students, and she hopes the full Parrish campus would support up to 15,000 students after all three phases are completed.

The first building, she said, will likely offer general education courses that lead to an associate degree, along with dual enrollment classes, especially since Parrish Community High School is on the same road.

“And also some lifelong learning programs for people who are maybe later in their careers or toward the end of their career, who are interested in staying very intellectually engaged,” Probstfeld said.

“In terms of more specific types of programs, like environmental science, those evolve as the needs of employers in the Parrish area become more clear,” she continued.

The project is supported by at least seven organizations:

• The Manatee Chamber of Commerce.
• The Parrish YMCA.
• The Greater Sarasota Chamber of Commerce.
• CareerSource Suncoast.
• The Bradenton Area Economic Development Corporation.
• The Parrish Civic Association.
• The Economic Development Corporation of Sarasota County.

“State funding of the public, post-secondary institutions in our community is critical in developing a highly skilled workforce to serve the needs of the local economy and recruit new business to our region,” the Manatee Chamber of Commerce said in its letter of support.

The initial fundraising and construction is expected to last several years, but SCF will soon launch its “Parrish after Dark” program, a series of non-credit courses held at the local YMCA.

Probstfeld said the college held focus groups and learned that Parrish residents were interested in learning about retirement planning, techniques to improve memory and social media marketing for small businesses, among other topics.

The program, which is scheduled to launch in January, is part of SCF’s goal to plant roots in Parrish and surrounding areas.

“Our tradition as an institution, since we were founded, is to be where our students need us to be,” Probstfeld said.