As the metro prepares for a wave of new high tech, movie and TV jobs, CNM says it wants public feedback on how it should add to the college in the next ten years.
The college is launching a series of public forums designed to help take feedback for its next campus master plan.
CNM says it hopes to learn what kind of job training and education opportunities the public wants to see in the coming years, but it also has a few ideas of what you may see next at the school.
“The college is focused on creating relevant space,” said Samantha Sengel, VP of Advancement and Enrollment Strategies for CNM.
The master plan process comes as CNM anticipates offering a strong pipeline of students from its Film Technician program to Netflix. The entertainment giant recently announced its intent to buy Albuquerque Studios with a plan to use the facility as a U.S. production hub.
Earlier this week, CNM also announced its plans to create a new police training academy for the metro-area.
“As we think about what we can learn in these public forums, it’s about listening for themes and understanding what the community, the employers, their families are imagining what their future work will look like and designing to be able to fulfill that,” said Sengel.
In recent years, CNM has remolded an old library into a medical training facility with mock surgical rooms, an area with hospital beds and other medical related rooms.
The “L Building” on main campus was also recently remodeled to house loads of new science labs.
One area CNM is looking to add training is in the realm of professionals who can build and service home and office automation.
“We still need electricians, but we need electricians that have skills that they can work in an automated environment or a technology environment as well,” said Sengel.
CNM says its future offerings are also dependent on what types of jobs hit the Metro in the coming years.
“We really do engage with those employers to listen for that future of thinking,” said Sengel.
CNM has a history of shaping its programs around employers. Most recently, they worked with Facebook to create a specialized certification program to fast-track electrician training so that more employees could work on building the social media company’s new Los Lunas data center.
CNM’s first master plan public forum happens Tuesday, Oct. 30 on the main campus at the Smith Brasher Hall Auditorium. Click here for a full list of future master plan public meetings.
