Hundreds of local residents have signed up for fall semester classes at the UT Martin Parsons Center. According to Director Jason Rushing, 304 students are taking classes at the Center, which is in its second semester in a newly constructed building.

The 19,000 square foot Parsons Center features state of the art technology, a library and computer labs. In addition, a science lab has given the school the opportunity to offer science courses for the first time this semester. Students can now take chemistry, biology, zoology and physics at the Center.

The chemistry, biology and zoology courses are completely full, Rushing said. There are several other classes that are completely filled up, including some math courses and public speaking. Half a dozen more are close to the maximum number of students.

There are more than 80 additional students at the Center compared to last year, when only 40 courses were offered. At the time, classes were still being held in the evening at Riverside High School. The new Centered opened for the spring semester in January of this year.

Because the Center has its own space, daytime classes are now available. Rushing said as time goes on the number of classes being offered during the day will increase. The increase in the number of classes should help a variety of students with varying schedules find a class that works for them and should help continue the trend of record enrollment at the Center.

“We are really pleased with the numbers we’re seeing this semester,” Rushing commented. “We look forward to continued growth in the future.”
For more information on the programs offered at the UT Martin Parsons Center, contact Rushing at 847-3880 or visit www.utm.edu.