West Virginia Community and Technical College System Story Archives

Higher Education Leaders Set Goal to Increase Number of College-Educated West Virginians

Higher education leaders in West Virginia announced Wednesday a goal to see more of the state’s workforce with a formal education credential beyond high school by 2030.

Leaders in higher education hope to see at least 60 percent of the state’s workforce holding some kind of higher education credential in just a little more than ten years. The West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission made the announcement Wednesday in a press release.

This means nearly doubling the percentage of working-age West Virginians who have either a traditional four-year degree or qualification, such as an associate’s degree from a community college, or some other kind of certification.

This new campaign is called “West Virginia’s Climb.” It was launched at the annual Student Success Summit this week, which attracts nearly 500 West Virginia educators and is sponsored by the West Virginia HEPC and the state Department of Education.

Staff from the HEPC and the West Virginia Community and Technical College System acknowledge the campaign is “a lofty goal,” but one they say is attainable through awareness, college access and dedication.

According to the HEPC, the highest percentage by county of working-aged certificate- and degree-holders is Monongalia at 45 percent, while the lowest is McDowell at eight percent.

More High School Grads Choosing College in West Virginia

A report says more high school graduates in West Virginia pursued a college education last year.

The report released Tuesday by the West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission and West Virginia Community and Technical College System found 266 more students attended college compared with 2015.

The report says the overall rate increased for the second consecutive year. Higher Education Chancellor Paul Hill says the improvement represents “genuine progress in creating a college-going culture in West Virginia.”

Ohio County had the highest college-going rate at 71.5 percent. Mineral County was next at 66.3 percent, and Monongalia was third at 66 percent.

Braxton, Doddridge and Clay counties had the highest rates of improvement from 2015 to 2016.

State Education Official Testifying in Washington

West Virginia’s Community and Technical College System chancellor, Sarah Tucker, is testifying this week before a congressional subcommittee.

Tucker will appear before the U.S. Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies at a hearing on STEM education, or science, technology, engineering and math.

West Virginia’s U.S. senators, Democrat Joe Manchin and Republican Shelley Moore Capito, both serve on the subcommittee. The Community and Technical College System said the senators reached out to Tucker to speak.

She is to appear at 10:30 a.m. Wednesday.

Community College System to Hold Open House for ITT Tech Students

The ITT Technical Institute in Huntington recently closed after a crack-down on federal financial aid for for-profit institutions. The West Virginia Community and Technical College System is hosting an open house to show students ITT Tech students more options Tuesday.

The open house will be at the Big Sandy Superstore Arena in Huntington.

BridgeValley Community and Technical College, Mountwest Community and Technical College and Huntington Junior College will be on-site to present options to the ITT Tech students.

ITT Technical Institute, one of the country’s largest for-profit institutions, announced this week it was permanently closing all campuses nationwide. The Department of Education recently banned ITT students from receiving federal aid as part of a crackdown on for-profit colleges. The Company has operated 130 campuses in 38 states. The location in Huntington is the states only location.

Students are asked to obtain their transcript from the ITT portal online and bring any information they have about their loans.

The open house will run from 10-1 on Tuesday.

Eunice Bellinger Named BridgeValley's New President

Eunice Bellinger has been named the new president of BridgeValley Community and Technical College.

The Charleston Gazette-Mail reports the school’s Board of Governors voted Monday to select Bellinger as the college’s next president.

BridgeValley spokesman Brian Bolyard said the school’s presidential search committee recommended Bellinger, who was among three finalists for the post.

Upon required further approval of her contract by the West Virginia Community and Technical College System’s board, Bellinger will begin serving July 6.

BridgeValley officials say Bellinger has nearly 23 years of teaching experience and has held upper-level administrative positions at several colleges, including the State University of New York’s Niagara County Community College, SUNY’s Genesee Community College, Massachusetts Bay Community College, SUNY’s Empire State College and at the United Arab Emirates’ Abu Dhabi University.

West Virginia Sets Goal to Increase Degrees Awarded

West Virginia higher education officials want to increase the number of degrees awarded annually in the state to 40,000 by 2025, more than doubling those awarded last year.

West Virginia’s two-year and four-year public colleges and universities awarded a record 18,000 degrees in 2014, but now higher education officials are looking for ways to increase that number to meet future workforce demands.

The West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission and the West Virginia Community and Technical College System announced the “Double the Degrees” effort on Wednesday in a news release. The program is meant to increase the number of college and university degrees awarded in West Virginia.

The agencies say several initiatives are underway to achieve their goal of 40,000 degrees by 2025, including increasing college access and improving the student credit transfer process.

Higher Education Policy Commission chancellor Paul Hill and Community and Technical College System chancellor Sarah Tucker say an increased number of college and university graduates will better position West Virginia to attract quality, high-paying jobs.

Research shows that by 2020, more than half of jobs in West Virginia will require an associate’s degree or higher, but only about 30 percent of West Virginians currently fall in that category.