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Joint GMU-NVCC campus proposed for Loudoun
Two of Virginia's largest institutes of higher education are considering expansion plans in Loudoun County -- possibly at the same location.
Now in the works is a proposal by George Mason University and the Northern Virginia Community College, which already has a campus in Loudoun, to open a full-service university in Brambleton that the two would share.
The site being eyed for the 1 million-square-foot campus is on the south end of Brambleton between Belmont Ridge Road and the Loudoun County Parkway.
Daniel Walsch, a spokesman for GMU, said plans are now in the infancy stage. He said what attracts GMU to Loudoun are projections that the county will continue to grow over the next couple of decades.
"We feel like there is a big need for higher education in Loudoun County," he said. "But the powers that be in Loudoun are the ones that ultimately have to bless this."
A spokesperson for NVCC said he was not at liberty yet to comment on the proposal.
The schools' proposal came to light Aug. 14 in a memo Board of Supervisors Chairman Scott York (I-at large) sent to other supervisors before a joint meeting of members of the Board of Supervisors and the School Board. In the memo, York said he first heard of the campus idea during a meeting Supervisor Lori Waters (R-Broad Run) and he had with Brambleton developers on July 31. York said he supports the plan.
"I believe that if such an opportunity can come to fruition," York wrote, "it will be of tremendous value to our students as well as to Loudoun County's business community."
The idea of GMU opening a campus in Loudoun is not a new one. Two years ago, the school considered building a facility in the Dulles South area on land that was promised by developer Greenvest. However, after county supervisors denied the comprehensive plan amendment that Greenvest needed to move forward with its development --- which could have brought up to 30,000 more homes to Loudoun – the campus idea fell through.
Supervisor Eugene Delgaudio (R-Sterling) said he supports the current proposal.
"I'm delighted and excited by this," he said. "This county is crying for an academic institution to be here for our students."
On Aug. 14, the joint Board of Supervisors and School Board Committee agreed to ask each of its respective boards to launch a feasibility study into the need for such a campus in Loudoun. Among the items the study would look at is whether Brambleton is a suitable location and whether Loudoun's school system could have an involvement in the campus.
"We don't want George Mason University to decide what it wants and then come to Loudoun County," said Supervisor Susan Klimek Buckley (D-Sugarland Run). "We want to have a voice in this."
Contact the reporter at jjacks@timespapers.com
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