Greetings from Colby Community College. We hope everyone is doing well. Recently,
we formally launched our campaign for the “Big Blue Barn.” This has led to a series of questions from intrigued community members. The first
and most common question is, “What is the Big Blue Barn?” Because of the questions
and potential concerns around the facility, we decided it would be most appropriate
to address them via an article. This will cover the what, when, where, and why of
the Big Blue Barn.
Let’s start with the “what.” The Big Blue Barn is an athletic practice/intramural
facility. Our proposed building will be approximately 18,000 square feet and divided
into three areas that will be practical and accommodating for the institution’s various
needs. As the name implies, it will be a metal facility with a concrete floor. This
is not a competition facility and would not allow us to hold competitive events. The
first of the three sections will be a wrestling area. One of our struggles is that
our current facility is inadequate to accommodate a full wrestling team. This new
area will hold two wrestling mats that can be rolled up and lifted to the ceiling.
The rubberized floor will allow for intramural competition and activities. We are
also exploring the possibility of placing two basketball goals in the area.
The second section features a full weight room in one half and men’s and women’s locker
rooms in the other half. A storage area will be above the locker room. A challenge
of the institution is our inability to accommodate the needs of the Fit Lab users.
We dedicated resources to making the Fit Lab a more viable weight room, which has
ultimately been very successful. However, we developed a new problem where our athletic
teams have the area occupied nearly every day and most evenings. This created issues
for our general student population and community members who want to work out in the
area. The purpose of creating a new weight room is to provide a dedicated space for
student-athletes, so the Fit Lab is available for others to use.
The third area will have a turf surface to accommodate baseball, softball, track,
and a potential soccer team. Drop-down nets from the ceiling will allow baseball and
softball to take batting practice. For cross country and track teams, there will be
a track around the entire perimeter of the facility. Lastly, as we look at the vision
of the institution, adding a soccer team in the near future makes a lot of sense.
When will the endeavor begin? We are currently compiling and completing a design/build
concept. A request for proposals will go out by the end of October 2018 with the intention
of breaking ground in March 2019. The goal is to have the facility completed by August
2019. The design/build concept strategy allows the institution to hire a general contractor
who is responsible for hiring the architect and engineers. The anticipated cost of
the facility is approximately $1.3 to $1.5 million. One of the common questions we
receive relates to the variance in anticipated cost. Currently, we are dealing with
unpredictable steel prices due to the proposed and imposed tariffs.
The next question is, where? The proposed facility will go on the site of the old
baseball field. We want to utilize the space because of the minimal dirt work and
its proximity to campus. Having the facility close to our dorms would allow maximum
use of the Big Blue Barn.
Why do we need a facility like this? Colby Community College is the only community
college in Kansas without athletic facilities on campus. This has created challenges
in not only the recruitment of students but also in preparing for competition.
The next logical question is, why create a facility that has a primary impetus of
serving student-athletes? Colby Community College has a little more than 1,400 students
this semester. Approximately 175 are student-athletes, but this number ranges from
170-220 students. Anyone who knows me understands how I feel about athletics. I believe
they are vitally important to community engagement and attracting diversity to our
campus; however, I never lose sight that a student is a student before becoming a
student-athlete. In the last academic year, we had 43 student-athletes who made NJCAA
All-Academic teams, meaning they had above a 3.6 GPA. Not only do these young men
and women excel in their respective sports, but they also excel in the classroom.
Student-athletes enrich our campus and perform a tremendous amount of community service.
They also help support institutional auxiliary operations (i.e., living in our dorms,
utilizing our meal plans, purchasing textbooks from the bookstore, etc.). Additionally,
student-athletes also bring their families into our communities and help support local
economies. We thought these are important points of distinction that our communities
should understand.
Why is this an appropriate time to build a facility like this? Colby Community College
has experienced some new and unique challenges over the last few years. These opportunities
for improvement have provided the College with the ability to address and increase
efficiencies and outcomes. The institution is back to a point of stability and sound
operation. Colby Community College was just recognized by the Chronicle of Higher
Education as having the 24th highest graduation rate in the nation among the two-year
sector (out of 762 institutions, placing us in the top 3.1% in the nation). In addition,
our students have had the highest or second highest wage outcomes for the last four
years among the 26 community and technical colleges in the state. Colby Community
College is constantly exploring ways to improve the institution and enhance the student
experience.
Does this facility compete with the importance of a new community events center? In
my opinion, not in the slightest. The facilities are very different, but both are
vitally needed. Colby Community College and the City of Colby explored the possibility
of partnering to combine facilities, but for a variety of reasons this did not come
to fruition. The reasons include, but were not limited to, the following: When we
began this project, the location of a new community events center was unknown. We
also did not know if a new events center would be approved on the November ballot.
If a new events center is approved, Colby Community College would not have full access
to the facility, and there were additional costs to incorporate our needs into an
events center. Even though our goals did not align on this project, I am extremely
grateful for our relationships with the City and the County. I cannot stress the importance
of these relationships enough.
When preparing a facility like this or the proposed events center, in my opinion,
it is imperative to plan for the current needs of the college as well as the future
needs of our community. As in institution, we feel this facility not only benefits
Colby Community College, but the community.
How is the project going to be funded? Colby Community College is going to fund the
Big Blue Barn through donations and grants. Currently, we are meeting with approximately
75 individual donors, but we anticipate this number growing to over 125. This facility
will not be built with tax dollars. We felt it was imperative to fund the project
in this way and be transparent to our constituents.
If you are interested in the project or have concerns, please do not hesitate to contact
me at seth.carter@colbycc.edu or on my office line at (785) 460-5400. All donations are tax-deductible and can
be made to the Colby Community College Endowment Foundation. If you prefer, gifts
can be made through the campaign page.
On behalf of Colby Community College, we want to extend our sincere gratitude to the
communities we serve. As always, if you have not been on campus lately, please stop.
We would love to see you.
Respectfully,
Seth Macon Carter