Saturday, December 24, 2011
Staff report
steubenville
Enrollment at Eastern Gateway Community College has grown 42 percent over the past five years.
This growth is the third-highest among the 23 community colleges in Ohio for the reporting period of fall 2007 to fall 2011. Only Stark State College of Technology and Clark State Community College had larger percentage changes at 82 percent and 52 percent, respectively.
Patty Sturch, dean of enrollment management and student information, also told the college’s Board of Trustees at a recent meeting that the college’s record 16 percent growth this fall contributed to the five-year boost.
Registration for the spring semester is ongoing, Sturch said, and more than 1,700 students have registered.
“That is the most students we have ever had to register this early in the enrollment period,” she said. “We instituted additional steps to get the current students to re-enroll before they left campus for the holiday break. We believe these actions are paying off and will help with retention.”
In another report, Project Hope had a successful first semester, said Shari Prichard, project administrator. “With one term, we exceeded our goal of 500 students with 596 health students being served throughout the college’s district.”
Project Hope student coaches have weekly discussions with individual students and monthly group meetings as well as helping students to form study groups and to work through life problems blocking their education progress, she said.
Through the $14 million, five-year grant from the U.S. Department of Job and Family Services, Eastern Gateway and its partners offer a variety of certificate and associate degree programs in the health-care field to residents in the four-county region.
Project Hope will expand the college’s course offerings to include three new, career-bridge pathways, which can all transfer to a four-year registered nurse program, including a one-year paramedic certification, a one-year medical-assistant certification and a one-year nurse’s aid certification.
All three of these certificates also can serve as a bridge to an associate degree in Healthcare Information Technology (HIT), a certificate in practical nursing (LPN) or an associate degree in nursing (AND). Eastern Gateway’s grant was the only one chosen in the state of Ohio and was one of 17 awarded nationally.
Eastern Gateway’s Project Hope partners include Choffin Career and Technical Center, Columbiana County Career and Technical Center, Mahoning County Career and Technical Center, Trumbull Career and Technical Center, Humility of Mary Health Partners, Trinity Health System, Kent State University — East Liverpool and Salem — and Youngstown State University.
In the election of officers, the board selected John Gilmore of Jefferson County as chairman; William Mullane of Trumbull County as vice chairman; and Marilyn Montes of Mahoning County as secretary. Board meetings will be on a bimonthly basis with the 2012 meetings set for Jan. 11, March 7, May 2, July 11, Sept. 5 and Nov. 7. The meetings will start at 4:30 p.m.
In other business, President Dr. Laura Meeks reported the college is renting two classrooms in the IBEW facility in Warren to offer developmental- education day classes. The building is near the Trumbull Career and Technical Center, where the college offers evening classes.