Southwestern Community College’s Business Assistance Center has moved from the Macon Center to the Swain Center and will take a new direction in support of heritage tourism and arts.

The Heritage Arts Program, which will begin in March 2006, will teach a variety of arts and crafts and the business skills necessary to make them profitable. Preliminary plans include teaching clay, fabric, instrument construction, and wood. As the need for professional training in other arts and crafts is identified, they will be added to the program.

“SCC has always had a strong continuing education program in arts and crafts,” said Shuler. “The Heritage Arts Program will be distinguished from our current program by the structure, number of hours, intensity, and student interest.”

By offering classes that provide instructor demonstration time, student practice time and the associated theory in the art form, students will leave the classroom with a level of skills necessary to sell their works, Shuler said.

Combining the heritage arts with the business assistance center is a good fit, said Shuler, because it expands crafts beyond just a hobby into an entrepreneurial business.

In addition, Shuler and her staff plan to use the Swain facility as a regional conference center.

Russ Seagle, SCC’s Small Business Center director, and Keith Corbeil, SCC’s Business and Industry Training coordinator, are working with Shuler to develop workshops and conferences of a regional appeal to be offered at the new Swain Center.

The center will also serve as a training base for distance learning through a program called Ed2Go. More than 300 continuing education classes are available to the public. For the most part, these are 24-hour courses that start the third Wednesday of each month and last six weeks. Lessons are issued over the Internet each Wednesday and Friday. Students have 10 days to access a lesson and to do the required homework and study. Access is available on a 24/7 basis. Courses range from web design to computer programming and from inventory management to foreign languages.

Even though the staff has changed location, service to all counties will remain the same, according to Hank Shuler, Business and Industry director.

Shuler, the new Swain Center director, will create a continuing education program in heritage arts to be taught out of Swain facility.

To see the full catalog of courses visit www.ed2go.com/scc or call Carolyn Rorher at 828.488.6413.