HOBART | An agreement between Ivy Tech Community College and Follett Higher Education Group allowing Follett to manage the 27 Ivy Tech bookstores statewide, benefits the college and its students.

The eight-year contract, beginning July 1, includes a $6 million signing bonus for the college.

The money will be used for renovations to various campus bookstores, improvements in service and a substantial savings to more than 110,000 Ivy Tech students statewide.

Ivy Tech Community College Northwest Chancellor J. Guadalupe Valtierra said the local campuses have about 6,500 students spread across four sites.

The first $2 million was presented Wednesday night at a reception hosted by Ivy Tech at Avalon Manor in Hobart.

Ivy tech Community College President Thomas Snyder said the agreement is the result of teamwork across the entire college, and is the "first in a series of revenue streams that will be available through outsourcing."

Synder and members of the college's board of directors are in Northwest Indiana for two days of meetings, the first of which was Wednesday in Gary. The board will be at the DeLaGarza campus in East Chicago today.

Several Ivy Tech students were on hand during the reception, and two of them accepted the check along with Snyder.

Zanele Kutamo, who graduated in May from Ivy Tech in Valparaiso, and Keith Conn, who earned his degree from the Michigan City campus, told the story of what Ivy Tech has meant to them.

A South African native, Kutamo was working four jobs in her country to save the money to go to college, coming to America five years ago. She has earned an associate degree in computer science and successfully transferred to Valparaiso University to earn a bachelor's degree.

Conn thanked Ivy Tech for the opportunities he has had there, earning an associate degree in business administration and paving the way for his future success.