Enrollment

The Virginia Community College System (VCCS) must serve at least 16,000 new students by 2009.

“…encouraging them to find their ‘voice’ and helping them set short- and long-term goals. Students come to class with a host of strengths; we build on those successes and learn how to navigate challenges, increasing their level of persistence. Frequent feedback, student-instructor interaction and a stimulating learning environment encourage students to remain optimistic and ambitious; that’s the power of potential at LFCC and in life.”

Kate Simpson
associate professor of English
Middletown Campus

In 2006-07, a total of 7,987 unduplicated students were served, resulting in 3,179 full-time equivalent (FTE) students. These numbers represent respective increases of 3.96 percent and 2.45 percent over the 2005-06 fiscal year.
Lord Fairfax Community College sought to attract more students by proposing new programs that respond to an emerging, critical workforce need. The Information Systems Technology (IST) program was revised to better meet the needs of students who plan to enter a field that expects to see jobs increase by more than 27 percent by the year 2014, according to the Occupational Outlook Handbook’s 2006-07 Edition and the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The College’s Luray-Page County Center began seeing the power of its potential as full-time enrollment there rose by more than 17% between spring 2006 and spring 2007.
A concerted effort was made to increase enrollment of under-represented populations by 5 percent over the 2004-05 academic year. From fall 2005 to fall 2006, student headcount increased by 30 percent, 25 percent and 6 percent in the respective under-represented populations of Asians, Hispanics and males.
The number of new high school graduates who enrolled at the College from fall 2005 to fall 2006 rose by 6.7 percent. Between spring 2006 and spring 2007, the number rose 15.5 percent. A number of initiatives helped lead to such numbers, including the hiring of a career coach in May 2006 to serve James Wood High School in Frederick County. The career coach’s primary job is to serve as a resource for the transition between high school and college by working with high school students individually and in small groups.
To meet the needs of our ever-expanding community, new courses have been added, including, Medical Sociology (for nursing students) and Advanced Composition (a writing-intensive course). Four additional courses will be offered in spring 2008: Biomedical Ethics (for nursing students); Major English Authors (a new education program requirement); History of the Middle East; and Major Writers in World Literature (a new education program requirement).
Computer simulation technology in health professions clinical labs was added for the nursing, practical nursing and emergency medical services (EMS) programs. One major addition was the May 2007 loan of an additional “Sim Baby” from the Virginia Office of Emergency Medical Services, which was made possible because of LFCC’s accredited EMS program. A “Sim Baby” is a computerized mannequin that can replicate most anything a “real” baby does, which allows nursing and emergency medical technician students to practice clinical skills in a non-life-threatening environment.
English as a Second Language (ESL) mentoring and tutoring services were enhanced to meet the needs of a growing ESL population. According to the Virginia Department of Education’s Report of Limited English Proficient Students, dated Sept. 30, 2006, the population of students with limited-English proficiency in the state’s public schools (K-12) rose by more than 100 percent from 2000-06 in all but one of the localities in the College’s service region.
A VCCS Chancellor’s E-Learning Enhancement and Development Award was received by the College in January 2007 and used to develop online general biology lab sections. An online lab section is being piloted this fall.