UCCI saves money on Cayman Brac campus move
(CNS): With the relocation to the West End of Cayman Brac from its Stake Bay facility, the Brac campus of the University College of the Cayman Islands (UCCI) will save as much as $9,500 per month. From 1 August, the UCCI campus will move into The Avistar III building on West End Road (next to the fire station), where CNS understands the rent is $6,000 and the college may sublet one unit for $500. For the previous location opposite the District Administration, UCCI was paying $15,000 a month.
The new facility will have 2 polycom fitted classrooms, a computer lab, 4 additional classrooms, a library, a student lounge and a board room, which will also be available for public bookings. UCCI Dean of Special Projects, Brian Chapell is also exploring the possibility of the provision of a science lab on the new campus.
Dr Chapell said, “We are very pleased to launch the upcoming academic year in this new location. The Avistar III boasts a great location and a dynamic layout that will allow for a more effective use of space for our students.”
Brac campus Director Martin Keeley said, "As the Brac campus develops in the future, we plan to add a number of new programmes that will suit the island. We anticipate that these programmes plus the additional space at the campus will give us the capability of attracting both students and professors to the Brac who would not normally come here. This, in turn, will expose our students to interesting and exciting new opportunities."
He added, “ The new location will provide us with more flexibility in terms of the numbers of courses we are able to offer, and will provide both students and staff with their own and very welcome places to escape each other!”
Owner of the Avistar III building, Garston Grant, welcomed the UCCI campus move stating that, “We are happy to have UCCI staff and students in our building and look forward to a long and successful partnership for the development of tertiary education in Cayman Brac.”
There will be an official opening ceremony of the new location in the near future, according to a UCCI release.
Category: Local News
There are very limited options, of exisiting real estate, on the Brac for locating a university/college.
Was this new building even an option in 2008 when the campus originally opened? I could be mistaken, but I believe it was not.
How about we consider the owner of the 15k per month space and consider if he was overcharging UCCI? However this is besides the points.
It was an excellent move to open a UCCI campus on the Brac. And now that a cheaper more suitable space is available, a sensible move to re-locate to that space. Simple.
When one considers the cost of renting commerical spaces in Cayman, 15k is not that much for a university/college. If a more appropriate space is available at half the cost, fantastic.
why cant we think outside the box……………. so we need one on the Brac?
Why not have small rooms in cayman on campus… not htis woule make too much sense.
And it is time for the PPM voters to really stop the stupiness… the fact remains that the PPM government spent the money of the Caymanian people poorly – and No I am not UDP or any PP (political party)
I am so tired of hearing PPM this and UDP that – uuna is the ones that will feel it well me too – listen look at the country nto from a political stand point of this part and that party… look at the mess it is in financially…. do we really need a campaus on Cayman Brac and not having one will not hurt the people of the Cayman Islands (it has three islands people)no it will be no harm because the one campus should serve all of US.. but no we so much in the Cayman Islands that we need two campus.. doubling the cost.. people wake up nah we just had over 400 graduates in all from the high schools here……. how many of them can we employ – the expartiates are not going home and their children are gonna get the jobs we ahve bigger problems UNITE – Caymanians UNITE….. and people Caymaninas are people from little cayman and cayman brac…..
peace out
So the persons from the Brac wanting to attend college must purchase a ticket for over a $100 and catch a flight to Grand Cayman every time there are classes? I don’t get your point.
Welcome to the economic reality of living on an island of 3,000 people.
Brac students were originally subsidised by the provision of free living accommodation on Grand Cayman (their families are on the Brac, NOT in Grand Cayman) so they couldn’t live with them, plus they were also given a monthly allowance to cover their daily living costs. Added up this came to more than running a small satellite campus on the Brac.
Aren’t we all trying to save money? Duh! Sure seems like a good move to me – kudos to UCCI for saving us a buck or two and taking care of the needs of the tertiary students on the Brac. Much cheaper than having to pay for them to be on Grand Cayman!
So PPM overpaid!
What’s new?!
Listen, why don’t we just stop reporting anything, good or bad, on poor little deprived Cayman Brac as it always seems to attract a lot of hatred backed comments instead of more positive useful dialog.
How could this be considered as a "great location?"
It is all the way at one end of the island. I thought we were trying to keep from this East/West foolishness but here we go again.
This should be a great location Mr. Chappel… Think about the constant buzzing of the planes, the sirens of the firetruck and all the noise from the blasting of the quarry, etc.
I guess we can expect our students to do even better now.
Also, do we really need to waste money on another opening ceremony?
I wish UDP would stop stealing the ideas that PPM have actually made a reality.
Its the PPM that was paying $15,000 per month the UDP is now saving money
Why do all these commenters think that either political party had ANYTHING to do with this move?
The original campus lease was negotiated by Syed, the disgraced ex-president of UCCI. The new lease was negotiated by Dr. Chapell. There was no input in either case from the political parties, and the decision to move the Brac campus was not a political one, but economically motivated.
The move is to a larger, better and cheaper facility which will only serve to benefit the Brac students. Trying to make this PPM vs UDP is simply foolishness.
Sorry but you are sadly misled if you think everything in these islands are not politically motivated… think again!
Im sorry but your comment sir/madam is a bit foolish.
Have you been to the Brac? I cnt think you would complain about buzzing planes and sirens and blasting from the quarry?
The most noise from the planes would be from the jet @ 6 in the morning, when NO ONE is in school and 6 in the night, throught the day the express runs and the noise from that surely wont interrupt anything. Sirens? ask anyone how many times they’ve seen the fire truck in use there, enough said. As for the quarry i believe you threw that in there?
There is no East/West separation, it is simply, a building was built, UCCI needed a place fo the school, rent was cheaper, facilities are better and thats that.
Persons in the Brac should be able to receive just as good of an education as us here in GCM.
Just an FYI, I am no followerer of the UDP or PPM they ALL need to go, but the school has NOTHING to do with politics, just say good luck to the persons who will be getting an education in the Brac and move on!
I’m sorry that you are sorry.
First of all, Yes, I live on the Brac.
I have to question when you have been to the Brac or if ever, they run sirens just about every time the plane lands. There are calls for bush fires and other small issues (thank God nothing too major) but you knew that.
As for the quarry, just check and see how many homes have had rocks land on them and building cracked due to the blasting.
Want to know what buzzing from the planes are, go to the bank throughout the day and tell me it doesn’t break concentration.
I forgot to mention that Texaco also has Avgas stored there as well, should be fine with you though.
Let’s take a closerlook at the East/West issue. A student from Spot Bay now has to drive/ride 12 miles to get to the campus. Most of them work at the Admin or Public Works which is in Stake Bay. But hey, this will be more convenient right?
The reference to UDP was that, according to the article, they are planning on another grand opening. The school is already open, why should we waste money again for some unecessary party?
I am all for saving the money, but did anyone try to renegoiate with the original lease agreement for the same amount? Of course not, but that’s not political either, right?
Brackers should get equal opportunity but based on your writings I hope they will get a better one because surely you have spell checker or something on your computer to help with your education.
I understand the Brac is the Promised Land and all but they were paying 15G’s a month rent? What planet were these people living on?
The planet is called "Earth" and the island is "Cayman Brac". I know that what UCCI was paying, was ridiculous but everybody has to do what they have to do to make a living and to make us young people the educated adults of tommorow.
I believe that people should also realize, the expense that we all live in today, so its not the case about "what planet we were living on".
I’m very happy to see that UCCI is "getting more for less and not less for more" because we deserve it.
The promised land?? Well, whe dat one come out from now? If you can’t find something positive to say about the Brac and whatever improvements are being made there, don’t bother to come on ya with your pile of fooishness bout wha planet we living on. Didn’t you notice the article referred to money being saved? At least that’s more uplifting to hear in comparison to paying Mackeeva’s bills!
Funny that you should ask "what planet". As the PPM government negotiated the lease on this building under their previous reign maybe you should ask the PPM what planet they were living on at that time. Its not the brackas or the current government that negoitiated this exorbitant lease – the current government has got more than a 50% reduction inmonthly rental for alot more space.
everybody saving money except Mac
I can’t for the life of me imagine any other island as small as the Brac with such amazing facilities for such a small community.
Brac’ers should be very proud and make full use of it.
But it begs the question in these cash-strapped times if it is truely value for money?
Please clarify – if what is value for money??? The fact that UCCI is in the Brac or the move by UCCI to less expensive rental property??? Youve lost me here!!!!
How about closing down the facilities entirely on the Brac, and paying the travel costs for the handful of Brac students to come over to GCM.
I bet that would save a lot MORE money, and expose the students from the Brac to the full range of facilities we have here in Grand.
My surprise was why fund a full campus on a tiny island with such a small population.
It would be MORE cheaper than flying students to grand cayman everyday or even every week…. There are many students that attend UCCI here on the Brac, there has to be at least 50! and a ticket to cayman cost $132.00 so that would be $6600.00 at least a week, $26,400 a month! Now does that make much sense! They could basically build a new college here and save more money but thats another story now.
So it makes more sense to do it this way than to fly brac students over!
You aren’t a logical thinker are you?