The spring semester began Tuesday at Three Rivers College, and school president Dr. Wesley Payne announced enrollment is rising for the first time in 10 years.
Enrollment peaked in 2012 before entering a period of steady decline, according to Payne. But compared to this time last spring, “We’re up 2.1% in credit hours, 1% in headcount.”
Payne credited hard work from faculty and staff across campus for turning their enrollment momentum around, and congratulated Student Services and Financial Services for making enrollment, registration and aid straightforward — something students have noticed.
“We have two main student opinion polls that we do once (per) graduation, and those have phenomenal results. You know, 95% of our students say they would recommend us to someone else at graduation,” Payne explained. The second poll will be held within the next two weeks and measure satisfaction with the registration process. Payne told board members the last three surveys measured 96-100% satisfaction in most categories.
“Your goal there is in the end, you’re going to retain more students and you’re going to attract more students, and hopefully what we’ve seen with this spring enrollment is the inflection point,” he said.
Chief Financial Officer Charlotte Eubank present the financial report. The college’s net position was lower than at the end of the 2022 winter semester due to financial aid from the pandemic finally petering out.
“A number of the categories are below last fiscal year. But if you remember, we also noted that last fiscal year contained about $2.3 million of one-time CARES funding,” Charlotte Eubank
CARES funding will cover the remainder of the HVAC work on campus. Meanwhile, HB-19 appropriations from the state covered remediations to the main parking lot.
When asphalt was taken up, crews learned the only base under it was compacted clay soil. Payne acknowledged the clay was virtually solid, but still prone to shifting, which damaged the lot’s surface. Six inches of compacted limestone substrate were laid under the new parking lot.
All things considered, Payne remarked, the old lot held up remarkably well.
“Every time you make a decision you make it with the best information within the constraints and you have then and do the best you can. I was shocked that it held up as long as it did.”
Another improvement TRC made was replacing speed bumps with “speed ramps,” Payne said, which are gentler to drive over and double as a raised sidewalk for pedestrians.
In other news, music adjunct Sharon Mitchell was named the Missouri Community College Association’s Outstanding Adjunct of the Year, making her the state and local winner.
“She does great work. Her passion for our students and her discipline is truly evident in the work that she did,” said Payne.