Work ongoing at satellite campus of NSCC
SCOTT TRUXELL/independent editor
A local project that has been in the making for several years is headed toward completion.
Crews have been busy transforming the former Kennedy Manufacturing building on E. Sycamore St. into a full-service satellite campus of Northwest State Community College. The 50,000 square foot structure had been vacant for approximately 15 years when it was purchased by NSCC in early 2022, at a cost of nearly $500,000. Even before Archbold-based NSCC acquired the property, plans for a Van Wert-based satellite campus had been under discussion for approximately three years but like many other things, those plans were slowed by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Dr. Jon Tomlinson, Dean of the Van Wert Campus, offered the VW independent a tour of the building on Friday morning. He explained that much of the important infrastructure work is done or nearing completition, including metal framework, electrical components, gas lines, plumbing and IT.

Tomlinson noted the only parts of the original interior that will remain are a stairway to the second floor and an elevator.
In addition to interior work, crews are working outside the building as well and are prepping for three layers of roof work to ensure the building is waterproof. Once the structure is watertight, workers will begin installing seven HVAC units on the top and drywall will begin to go up.
According to Tomlinson, renovations of the massive building are on schedule.
“We are on schedule for most of the construction, as of right now, to be done in the June time frame,” he stated. “Then we are hoping for open houses and that type of stuff sometime after the Fourth of July. We’ll open it up to the public, let the public do tours and walk-throughs and see what the former Kennedy building looks like now.”
“If the time frame holds, we are looking at a full slate of fall semester classes at Van Wert campus, and our fall semester starts in mid-August,” he added. “Obviously, we’ll be able to do all the gen-eds (general education) and College Credit Plus students to take in-person college classes, lots of business programs, business management, marketing, entrepreneurship, banking and finance, accounting, computer science, cybersecurity, electrical engineering and industrial technology. Those are the phase I programs that will be held in face-to-face classes in this building.”
Once construction is complete, the first floor of the building will be home to an atrium/welcome area with a large skylight, a small bookstore, two conference rooms, various administrative offices and the workforce development lab, plus a computer lab that will also be used for eSports.
The main entrance to the building will shift from the north side to the west side, which is where students, staff and visitors will park. Tomlinson also said for safety and security purposes, access will be done solely by keycards.
“The only people that will be able to get into the building will have an ID, an accessible badge,” he explained. “Everybody else can get into the building, but they’ll have to check in. In this day and age, we have to know who’s in the building and who’s not in the building.
Four large classrooms and science labs will be on the second floor, along with faculty office space. Two of the classes will be “HyFlex” classrooms, meaning they’ll provide educational opportunities through a combination of in-person and online learning.
“We’re in the last 6-8 months of coming to fruition,” Tomlinson said.
He also said to start, NSCC will rely on full-time faculty, if needed, from the main campus in Archbold, along with part-time faculty from Paulding and Van Wert counties.
“Once student volume increases to a point, then the college will look at hiring more full-time faculty that will be stationed at the Van Wert campus,” he said.
Tomlinson said the vision of NSCC President Dr. Todd Hernandez is “Elevate Northwest Ohio,” which is an important part of the satellite campus, which is designed to serve Van Wert and Paulding counties.
“It’s built off statistics, research and Governor DeWine saying that in order to compete in the current environment, 65 percent of the workforce needs to have some type of education beyond high school, whether that’s a short-term certificate, a technical career path like a Vantage Career Center, an associate degree or above,” Tomlinson stated. “Right now, Van Wert sits at 47 percent, Paulding sits at about 42 percent, so the counties that this campus will cover or support are several percentage points below 65 percent. That’s our vision going forward – to work with our partners, work with our governments and businesses to help workforce development.”
Tomlison also said NSCC’s Foundation gives away between $800,000 and $1 million in scholarships and he said the college has institutional scholarships based on GPA that can result in tuition costs toward an associate degree being completely covered. He also said scholarships will be available specifically for the Van Wert campus and he noted that nearly half of NSCC students finish their degree with no debt.
“Between scholarships and grants, they’ve been able to cover their entire tuition,” he said.
For more information about NSCC’s Van Wert campus, click here.

POSTED: 02/01/25 at 12:21 am. FILED UNDER: News