SAN DIEGO — UC San Diego Extension, the continuing education arm of the university, has signed a lease on a new three-story high-tech facility called University City Center that will dramatically increase its ability to serve adult learners.

For the convenience of working adults, classes for most of UC San Diego Extension’s 100 certificate and special study programs are held evenings and weekends on the UC San Diego main campus and two other locations in Sorrento Mesa and Mission Valley. University City Center will replace the Sorrento Mesa Center with a soft opening in the summer of 2011 and a grand opening in the fall of 2011.

Conveniently located adjacent to Interstate 805 near the Governor Drive exit, the 49,819-square-foot University City Center is twice the size of Sorrento Mesa Center and is designed to meet the needs of today’s working student. University City Center offers 23 high-tech classrooms, expansive executive-style learning space, 13 hands-on labs, a dedicated online learning studio suite, expanded student counseling spaces and abundant meeting room and video-conferencing space for conferences and workshops. The center will also house the UC San Diego Extension’s new career transition program for displaced college-prepared professionals. The site offers ample free parking and student lounges/study areas.

“This new campus strengthens our ability to deliver a high quality learning experience to recent and mid-career college graduates seeking continuing education,” says Mary Walshok, associate vice chancellor of public programs and dean of Extension for UC San Diego.

UC San Diego Extension is recognized nationally and internationally for linking the public to expert professionals and the knowledge resources of the University of California. Through UCSD-TV, 1 million San Diego homes enjoy daily access to an abundance of useful ideas, creative minds and provocative thinkers. Although a part of the university since 1966, UC San Diego Extension receives no state support and relies on the funding generated from fees, contracts, grants, sponsors and donors for its annual budget of approximately $35 million.

During the 2009-10 academic year UC San Diego Extension served a record 55,598 enrollees, which translates to 26,006 students in 4,989 courses. Additionally another 47,946 individuals were trained throughout the western United States by UC San Diego Extension certified instructors in programs not directly offered by the University.

UC San Diego Extension officials credit the continued strong interest in career development and the university’s commitment to aligning workforce development with regional economic growth. Certificate enrollment is up 43 percent and overall enrollment has increased 11 percent in three years.