"I shudder to think what this community would look like if we didn't have Harvest. The things it has done have been transformative. Money has been invested ... with the right mindset of job creation and moving the community forward."
- Cynthia Ingram, Former Member - Harvest Foundation Board of Directors
MARTINSVILLE - A string of speakers today pressed representatives of the state Council of Higher Education to support creation of a four-year college in the Martinsville area.
And while all supported creation of a college, most spoke in favor of a model that is being supported by a philanthropist group that has made a $50 million matching pledge toward the school's establishment in Henry County.
Yesterday's assembly was one of a series of town hall meetings being held by the state council to gather local comments on the need and desirability of setting up a new four-year college in Southside.
The meeting at Patrick Henry Community College drew several hundred people. Another hearing will be held 9 a.m. until noon tomorow at the state council offices in the James Monroe Building on North 14th Street in Richmond.
"We want the college," Martinsville Mayor Joe Cobbe said. "We want an institution of higher learning here. . . . The community needs education."
