NORTH DELTA - Delta Community College (DCC), formerly known as Delview Adult Learning Centre, has been located in the same old building next to Delview Secondary for more than 30 years.
However, students enrolled in DCC for classes in September will be treated to a new facility, as the school is moving to the North Delta Secondary grounds on 116th Street and 83rd Avenue.The new building, which is just over 1,400 square metres in size, is about 50 per cent larger than the old space. It also has eight full-sized classrooms equipped with digital LED projectors (donated by the Rotary Club of North Delta), a computer lab, a student lounge, a childcare centre with an outdoor playground and 60 parking stalls.Alyson Caouette, head administrator at DCC, said it's a much-needed upgrade and she is excited at the prospect of finally having a place to call their own, come September."Adult education in Delta has never really had a home. They've been in all kinds of different sites, different venues, wings of schools. And as demographics change, theadult education gets moved," she said.Caouette, a former vice-principal at South Delta Secondary and Seaquam Secondary,fully embraces the challenges that come with adult education, but also said the rewards make it worthwhile."It's amazingly relieving for adults who finally get up the courage to get up and see us and find out that it's not going to take them six years to get their (credentials)."Our students here are as young as 18 and as old as 80. We had an 82-year-old man who walked across the stage a few years ago," Caouette said.Deneka Michaud, manager of communications for Delta school district, said she is really excited to bring a sense of community to the new building."The students support each other. They usually do a Christmas thing where they will help out a few schoolmates who maybe can't afford toys for their kids."To be able to bring that spirit and bring it to a new centre that they can really have pride in ... will be a huge benefit," Michaud said.There are three programs that DCC offers.The basic one is known as LINC (Language Instruction for Newcomers to Canada), an introduction English class for people who have yet to become Canadian citizens. The second program is known as Literacy Foundations, which upgrades skills for people who haven't completed high school. The third is completing a high school diploma.kyle.benning@gmail.com