A New Era

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PROFILES

A NEW ERA

LONNIE ROBERTS, NEW PRESIDENT OF CPTC, FEELS A SENSE OF OWNERSHIP Photos courtesy of CPTC

A Q & A with the new president of Coastal Pines Technical College

Lonnie Roberts may be new to his role as President of Coastal Pines Technical College, but he is certainly not new to the institution itself or the area it serves.

Roberts began his career with Altamaha Technical College (ATC) in 2001 as Director of Institutional Effectiveness (IE) and Library Services. He was promoted to VP Institutional Effectiveness and was Acting President of ATC from 2013-2014. Before becoming president, he was Provost at CPTC from 2014-2021.

Before his work in secondary education, he worked in local government from 1981 – 2001 as county clerk and then county administrator for Jeff Davis County, Georgia. After twenty years in local government, he wanted a change. He found it in his first job with the technical college when he became director of IE. And, he hasn’t looked back.

Now, he’s at the helm of the region’s technical college, which he had a hand in creating through a merger with two existing technical colleges. He sat down recently with Okefenokee Living Magazine to talk about his motivation and goals, and the challenges facing CPTC in the foreseeable future.

Lonnie with former CPTC president, Dr. Glen Deibert, and Governor Brian Kemp on Kemp’s recent visit to the CPTC campus in Baxley.

Q. What motivates you to serve as

President of CTPC?

“While serving for a year as acting

President at ATC, I worked very closely with Dr. Deibert at Okefenokee Technical College (OTC) to merge our two colleges to form

Coastal Pines Technical College.

Having such an integral hand in its creation and serving in a senior leadership position since the merger has created a sense of

“ownership” in me. I have watched, and had an active role in, the growth and development of CPTC into the outstanding college that it is today.” Q. What do you feel is the most positive impact CPTC has on the lives of students and in the communities CPTC serves?

“Workforce development. We prepare students to have the skills to graduate and go directly into the workforce in our communities.

That has a great economic impact.

It benefits the student, the community, and gives us a sense of pride knowing we have prepared these students.” Q. What are the most critical ways

CPTC helps local businesses and industries through its economic development programs?

“We offer customized training through our Economic Development Division. We tailor training that is specific to the needs of our business and industry partners.

Additionally, through the TCSG

Quick Start program, new or expanding businesses can receive free training for their employees.” Q. What are the top reasons you think a student should choose

CPTC?

“Marketable skills: We prepare students with the skills needed to go to work.

Convenience: We have seven campuses within our 13-county service delivery area, plus additional adult education sites conveniently located close to home for our students.

Cost: Through federal student aid, various grants/funding sources, the HOPE scholarship, and our

CPTC Foundation, students can graduate debt-free.” Q. What are the niche programs that CPTC provides for its service area?

“What we do here is all about having communicable relationships with our local business and industry partners. We cater our programs on each campus to meet the needs of our local workforce.

Programs like nursing, timber harvesting operations, commercial fishing, naval apprentice, and railroad systems management that specifically feed into industries within the communities we serve.” Q. How has CPTC been negatively impacted by the pandemic?

“We don’t have as many students on campus. We love to see our campuses busy with student life.

Additionally, because we have had to limit the number of students in our lab settings at one time, it has put a strain on the “hands-on” learning that we typically offer.

We have also had an increase in costs for supplies to keep up with the cleaning demands, as well as purchasing Personal Protective

Equipment (PPE).” Q. Are there any positive changes that came about because of the pandemic that you see may be part of CPTC’s culture for the foreseeable future?

“We have seen a strengthening of web accessibility for our students, which has also led us to make needed upgrades to technology and equipment for that purpose. Distance education is here to stay, and we plan to support it. And because we have had fewer students taking in-person courses, we have used this time to do some significant renovations and improvements on several campuses. Most recently, we have completed the renovation of the C. Paul Scott Polytechnical

Building in Jesup and the auditorium in Waycross, which will be a major benefit to both those communities and us.”

Q. What are your goals as president in the next 3 – 5 years? • “Continue aggressively advertising on social media. We must continue molding our advertising to fit the needs of the technology-driven student to find them where they are.” • “42% of CPTC’s population resides in Glynn and Camden counties. The remaining population is spread over 11 counties. We continually adjust academic program offerings to offer the appropriate program mix. We need to continue this process as we strategically plan new programs and brick and mortar space in the coastal counties where the most growth potential exists.” • “Develop key dual enrollment programs based upon the needs of local business and industry in each county. We have had success with this in the past, such as the Timber Harvesting Program and commercial fishing program.

Once developed, these programs can expand to other counties and high schools based on those local needs.” - “Expand and strengthen online programs and services. COVID-19 demonstrated how quickly traditional face-to-face classes can

Roberts with CPTC’s mascot, RayRay

become unworkable. We must continue a very robust and strong online program presence and work to make student services accessible online.” • “Develop an internal leadership program to identify and prepare future leaders. Colleges must prepare for future succession in leadership positions to provide stability as well as long-term success for CPTC.” • “Increase philanthropic support through our foundation and provide more student financial assistance.” Q. Regarding philanthropy, how vital is fundraising to CPTC?

“Philanthropy in education is very important. State funds do not cover the full cost of education.

Our students are often working in the field while they are with us to receive their education, and they need extra funds to help meet their financial needs. That is where our CPTC Foundation steps in.

Through scholarships, we can meet our students’ needs where financial aid and other grants do not cover the full cost. Student scholarships are where the bulk of our Foundation dollars go, but there are times where the Foundation can assist with program equipment needs and other areas to help the college.” Q. What changes do you foresee in the future of learning and posthigh-school education in the future?

“Constantly changing technology to meet the needs and demands of our students and business and industry clients. I also believe we will see an increase in cooperation between higher education institutions. There isn’t enough funding for every college to offer every program, so I think you will see colleges offering more collaborative program opportunities to students.”

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LONNIE ROBERTS

Q. How do you plan to capitalize on

CPTC’s strengths and mitigate

CPTC’s weaknesses moving forward?

“One strength of our college is our flexibility and ability to quickly respond to workforce needs and build programs to meet those needs. Another strength is our faculty and staff. I believe we have the best group of faculty and staff of any college. One of the things some may see as a weakness is our large service delivery area, but I feel like it is actually a strength for us. We have 13 different counties, each one with its unique strengths that create a vast resource we can draw upon. And combined, those 13 counties make Southeast Georgia the best place to live, work, and raise a family.

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By The Numbers:

4,000 Student enrollment for Spring & Fall semesters 325 Number of faculty and staff at all campuses 99% Employment rate in the field of study 94% Graduation rate 12+% Increase in Summer enrollment from 2020 to 2021 13 Counties served 7 Number of campuses