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Darton president gives update on school plans

• Darton College’s president speaks about the challenges his institution will face in the coming years.

Holly McCarthy

ALBANY — Darton College President Peter J. Sireno addressed faculty, staff and students Friday morning on how the college will adapt to the evolving millennial student.

In his State of the College speech, Sireno discussed the challenges facing Darton in the coming year and how the college has moved to address them.

“Darton College cannot remain static if we are to successfully educate an ever-evolving student body,” Sireno said.

Sireno explained that Generation X’s predecessor, the millennials — the group born in 1986 and after — has an entirely different style of learning thanks to being “immersed in technology.”

Darton will respond to the needs of the millennial student by embracing technology, incorporating more of a social networking feel to its Web platforms and developing hybrid classrooms that integrate computers into the learning process.

Ongoing plans for Darton include acquiring the Albany Museum of Art building by 2010 and constructing a new humanities classroom building. Darton ultimately will be able to accommodate 7,500 to 8,000 students after these improvements, Sireno said.

Enrollment numbers for the fall semester are not yet available, but Public Relations Specialist Lisa Burton said approximately 4,800 students attended Darton last year.

The college also plans to improve campus safety by enhancing its security camera system and developing Darton’s own police department.

“We’re in the process of interviewing four finalists from a pool of 20 applicants,” Sireno said. “Our intention is to hire a chief over the department of public safety before the end of the month and the other two to three officers within the next two months.”

Creating a more secure environment is another facet of accommodating a new breed of student, Sireno said.

Additionally, Darton has hired a First Year Experience Coordinator, Heather Eidson, to meet University System of Georgia standards.

“I just hope that we can continue to develop this program to help our first-time students get acclimated to college life, as well as to help their holistic development and help them become great leaders in their careers,” Eidson said.