VGCC President Reports Spring Enrollment Growth

Vance-Granville Community College President Randy Parker has announced growth in spring curriculum program enrollment at the college.VGCC curriculum programs, in which students work toward degrees and diplomas, posted a total of more than 4,100 students this semester. “This is a record-setting enrollment for our college for a spring semester term,” Parker said. “Typically, enrollment decreases slightly from fall semester to spring semester. We did not see that this year.”However, while the college saw record-breaking enrollment in the spring, the college receives funding from the state based on a three-year rolling average which is based on total student contact hours. Student contact hours are measured according to the total number of classes each student takes. One student taking 10 hours per week generates the same funding from the state as 10 students taking one hour per week, for example. This means that enrollment numbers can increase, but overall funding for the college may decrease, depending on the actual number of courses those students take each semester.From 2001 through 2004, area plant closings and federal funding for re-educating dislocated workers sent unprecedented numbers of students to the college, most of whom took full course loads in an effort to acquire new skill sets as quickly as possible. “This phenomenon created a spike in both enrollment and in student contact hours at the college,” Parker said. “And, as a result, the state increased our funding to accommodate that increased number of full-time students demanding more classes. Now, we’re pleased to see those workers successfully re-trained and productive in the work force again. Consequently, our state funding for curriculum programs will decrease by about $1 million over the next two years.”Meanwhile, 5,577 individuals are currently enrolled in 534 Community and Economic Development classes, college officials said. Community and Economic Development is an umbrella that includes Occupational Extension, Public Service, Workforce Investment Act, the Small Business Center, Personal Enrichment classes, and Basic Skills programs. The Basic Skills program saw an 11 percent increase for the 2006 calendar year (which determines its 2007-2008 budget). Statewide, Basic Skills growth at community colleges is flat. In 2005-2006, the college ranked behind only Central Piedmont Community College and Wake Technical Community College (the state’s two largest community colleges) in the number of GEDs (General Educational Development) and Adult High School diplomas awarded. VGCC SAW 524 students complete their GEDs and 116 graduate with an AHS diploma during the 2005-2006 fiscal year. “With a total of 680 people completing the equivalent of a high school diploma, you could say that Vance-Granville had a larger graduating class than the combined high school graduating classes of any single county in our college’s service area,” Parker said. The recent growth in Basic Skills was so strong that the state Board of Community Colleges awarded additional funds to VGCC this year.Vance-Granville’s Occupational Extension program has also shown a 7.8 percent increase for the 2006 calendar year. According to a report from the state community college system office, VGCC’s growth in Occupational Extension and Basic Skills was higher than that among other community colleges during the past year. In a recent memo to VGCC employees, Parker thanked all of the college’s faculty and staff for their efforts in boosting enrollment. “Everyone played a role in making this a record-setting year in all three of our instructional programs,” he said.