A new satellite college campus is opening in Burnsville this fall, and there's a preview set for Tuesday evening.

Inver Hills Community College is opening a branch a mile west of Interstate 35W on County Road 42, in the new Minnesota WorkForce Center.

The site will have evening classes that can be finished in eight weeks. An accelerated format allows students to take one class at a time but two per semester. Start dates vary from August to October, and classes are 6 to 9 p.m.

The new location begins to close a long-standing gap in the south metro in public institutions of higher learning.

There's an open house Tuesday from 6 to 8 p.m., with admissions reps available to help with enrollment.

The address is 2800 W. County Road 42.

Course offerings will change each semester, but this fall's include art, business math, public speaking, biology, guitar, Hispanic cultures, economics, political science, and educational planning and assessment.

David Peterson

dapeterson@startribune.com