When Green River Community College (GRCC) is mentioned, people automatically connect the title to the main campus in Auburn. Many people don’t know about the four other locations that are a vital part of the college’s overall makeup.
According to the 2009 fall data on the Green River website, the main campus houses more students then ever before. Bob Embrey, the business training director at Green River said, “the main campus offers the full spectrum of education and training the college has available, whereas the branch campuses are confined to a limited number of classrooms and aren’t designed to serve the entire college population.”
Each branch holds a special flow and feel; they also have unique classes not offered anywhere else. “Classes leading to general AA degree are offered at the branch campuses along with high demand classes, entry classes to other degree programs, and GED and ESOL classes to serve the local communities,” said Embrey.
Like the main campus, branch campuses offer morning and evening class times as well as offering many Continuing Education short-term job skills update classes. This includes classes that are non-credit personal enrichment classes. “The branch campuses are also a focal point of a high volume of customized business and industry training the college provides,” said Embrey.
The main campus has a different overall feeling of lifestyle, with everything from after school activities to the type of students who attend. “In the sense of campus life style, the branch campuses are predominantly focused on instruction and for the most part don’t have many of the extracurricular activities you’d find on the main campus,” says Embrey.
The stats this year show that 45 percent are males and 55 percent are female. The median age is 22, one year higher then in 2008. “Classroom size and class sizes are roughly equal between the main campus and the branch campuses,” Embrey states.
Each of the four locations are convenient for those who don’t want to travel far. With one in Enumclaw, a campus that sizes 11,518 gross square feet, one in Kent with 60,000 gross square feet, and one at the Auburn Transit Center with 7,280 gross square feet it makes it easy to achieve any type of education with minimal hassle. Overall the main campus makes up the biggest portion of the school’s lifestyle, students and classes; though each branch campus has its specific qualities as well.
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