‘Revival’ of PHEC and new partnership celebrated

By Mike Lange
Staff Writer

    DOVER-FOXCROFT — The Penquis Higher Education Center has had its ups and downs over the years as usage peaked during high periods of unemployment in Piscataquis County. During that time, hundreds of workers took retraining courses to enhance their chances of getting new jobs in another field.

Observer photo/Mike Lange

    LIVING HISTORY — John “Captain Jack” Battick, pictured right, will be teaching a course this fall at the Piscataquis Valley Adult Education Cooperative on “The Civil War: What, Why and How?” Battick, who taught history for 33 years at the University of Maine, visited the PHEC open house last week in his Navy captain’s Civil War uniform.

    But as the number of displaced workers dwindled, so did use of the center at the former Mayo Street School. Some town and county officials, who strongly backed creation of the center back in 2000, questioned the viability of PHEC.
    Thanks to an agreement finalized in January between the Piscataquis Valley Adult Education Cooperative (PVAEC) and Eastern Maine Community College, however, PHEC’s future is significantly brighter.
    PVAEC has moved into the building where the Piscataquis County Economic Development Council is already located. “Education and economic development go hand in hand,” said Thelma Regan, executive director of PVAEC. “This is a perfect partnership.”
    Dr. Larry Barrett, president of EMCC, said that 700 to 800 residents underwent job retraining when the center first opened. “But once they found jobs or retired, it became an outdated model,” Barrett said. “Having all these entities under one roof today makes it a centerpiece for education in the community.”
    PHEC hosted an open house on Aug. 19 with tours of the facility, a staff meet-and-greet and a pulled-pork barbecue for the community.
    Barrett said that the center’s realignment had been discussed “behind the scenes” for more than a year. “Many adults need and want education, but the thought of attending college is scary,” he said. “Now we have a facility that can offer both adult ed courses and advanced education under one roof.”
    Regan said that direct collaboration with EMCC “has made all the difference. You can’t get people to go to an empty building, no matter what you’re offering.”
    For many years, adult ed programs “got the leftovers,” Regan said. “We used old furniture and outdated computers – stuff nobody else wanted. But today, there’s a whole new attitude toward the program.”
    Paul Stearns and Norman Higgins, both retired educators who are running for the Maine House of Representatives, agree.
    “PCEDC has been the catalyst in the revival of the center. And when you have key players like Thelma (Regan), things really get done,” said Stearns. “PVAEC serves over 20 towns and they haven’t had an increase in the local share (of funding) in 22 years.”
    Higgins said that it’s “difficult, if not impossible, to have economic development without education. We have to adapt to today’s changing economy, and this center is doing just that.”
    More information is available by visiting www.pvaec.org, www.emcc.org and the Piscataquis County Economic Development Council’s website at www.pcedc.com.