From: Charleston Gazette-Mail
By: Max Garland
The planned college in Montgomery for children coming out of foster care now has a name — Riverbend Center Supporting Higher Education — and is aiming to open its doors at part of the former West Virginia University Institute of Technology campus in July, officials said at a news conference Thursday.
The conference focused primarily on the school’s unveiled name, logo and the partnership between the nonprofit KVC Health Systems, BridgeValley Community and Technical College and YMCA helping make the plans a reality. Officials say Riverbend will be the first college to target only foster care children.
Riverbend is expected to create 210 jobs in its first 10 years and have an annual economic impact of $22 million once it has a full body of 200 students, according to a promotional video unveiling the name at the event. The college will provide a year-round environment for its students, along with life coaching services and wraparound support, according to the video.
“We are going to build a village around these kids, and that’s our goal,” said Greg Ingram, the mayor of Montgomery. “We’re going to move some mountains again, and as I’ve said many times before, we know how to build schools up here. We’ve done it before, we’ll do it again.”
Following the announcement, Tommy Bailey, KVC Health Systems’ executive vice president of strategic initiatives, said in an interview that Riverbend is aiming to open in early July with roughly 50 students populating its campus.
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