After a long hiatus, college students could soon return to downtown Lebanon, N.H.
River Valley Community College, based in Claremont, is in the process of buying the building formerly occupied by Lebanon College and hopes to start offering courses there by next January.
The site in the heart of the downtown district has been vacant since Lebanon College abruptly closed its doors last winter because of financial problems. Kristyn Van Ostern is associate vice chancellor for the New Hampshire Community College system. At a recent Lebanon City Council meeting, she said academic courses would focus on business and industry, and could include a partnership with Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center.
“New Hampshire’s Community College system is really excited to be able to extend our academic programs and workforce training to the Upper Valley and we are really looking forward to getting in there as soon as we can,” Van Ostern told the council.
The Community College System of New Hampshire will hold a public meeting in Lebanon's City Council Chambers starting at noon on July 7 about its need for an economic development grant for renovations to building. It is not fully accessible to people with disabilities and requires other changes to support the new classes River Valley Community College hopes to offer at its newest site. River Valley officials say enrollment is increasing, partly because of dual enrollment options for high school students.
