Faced with financial and enrollment challenges coupled with an evolving student body, Mountain Empire Community College has undergone a “strategic restructuring” that cut $2 million out of its annual budget and laid off 14 employees.
The move comes as community colleges across the commonwealth are looking at ways to adjust their offerings to meet changing student needs. Enrollment at most of Virginia’s community colleges has declined over the past decade, though they have seen recent increases in students taking career and technical courses.
MECC has transitioned from mostly general transfer students to an increase in career-oriented and dual-enrollment students. And like most community colleges, MECC is also dealing with stagnant state funding, inflation pressures and increased operating costs, according to Kristen Westover, who is in her ninth year as president of the community college in Big Stone Gap.
The changes are designed to “ensure the college’s long-term financial sustainability and strengthen its focus on student success, workforce development and regional impact,” according to a news release issued by the college.
The restructuring plan announced in mid-November came after more than a year of data analysis, financial modeling and campus consultation, according to Westover.
Those who were laid off held a variety of positions, from a dean to grounds and maintenance workers, Westover said. An additional 20 employees have been transitioned into new or redefined roles.
The cuts and changes have been “quite painful, I’m not going to lie,” Westover said. “We’re trying to make sure that we provide support and resources. It’s always hardest to let people go.”
MECC also reorganized academics into three new schools: arts, sciences and human services; health and safety; and information and industrial technologies. The changes will emphasize high-demand fields and align training programs with the needs of the region’s labor market.
The state community college system declined a request for information about restructuring at MECC or elsewhere in Virginia and declined an interview request about the challenges community colleges are facing.
“Our colleges and System Office work closely together year-round to ensure appropriate and sustainable program and staffing levels,” said Virginia Community College System spokesperson Jim Babb in a statement. “The goal, of course, is to serve Virginians who seek to advance their careers and employers who need skilled workers. Decisions about staffing levels are made with utmost care, with special attention to the needs of the communities that we serve.”
CTE courses in demand, but costly to run
MECC’s full-time equivalent enrollment for the 2024-2025 school year was 1,480, about 400 fewer than a decade prior. FTE enrollment measures how many students a school would have if all students were enrolled full-time.
Almost one-third of that FTE enrollment last year came from dual-enrollment students taking college courses for both high school and college credit. Dual-enrollment students typically take classes at their high school, not on the college campus.
Without those dual-enrollment students, MECC’s FTE enrollment was fewer than 1,100.
Mountain Empire has seen its academic transfer enrollment decline by nearly half over the past 10 years. Only 19% of MECC students are on the traditional track to transfer to a four-year college, Westover said.
Career and technical education, however, has gained popularity even as overall student numbers have declined.
The majority of programs are now career-oriented fields such as welding, industrial technology and nursing, which are more expensive to operate because they require costly equipment for training and the classes are smaller. In the past, these programs were subsidized by large, low-cost general education classes like literature, which only required a textbook.
Alongside the growth of hands-on career training, MECC offers more than half its courses online. Many of the classrooms where general education classes were once taught now sit empty much of the time, though operational and maintenance costs for those facilities remain.
Exacerbating the financial woes is the fact that career-ready and dual-enrollment students tend to attend the community college part-time. The college’s current total enrollment is about 2,100 students, but about 70% are part-time, Westover said.
The state funds its community colleges largely based on the number of full-time equivalent students. It takes three part-time students to equal a full-time student, Westover said. So, enrollment shifts can result in tighter budgets.
“We have to touch three times as many students to receive one full-time equivalent in funding,” she said. “And our full-time equivalent is about $3,200 as opposed to $9,000 or $10,000 [at a four-year school]. So, we’re really, per student, not only is our FTE value less, but we’re dividing that among three heads.”
College officials recognized the changes over time and began taking steps to fill in the gaps, including carrying forward some COVID relief funds, Westover said.
MECC has also been able to depend on its college foundation, which now contributes 11% of the annual budget, which totals about $16 million, she added.
MECC restructure largely in uncharted territory for Virginia community colleges
MECC hasn’t had many examples at other Virginia community colleges to look to as it considered restructuring.
Eastern Shore Community College underwent a three-year revamp starting in 2019 after an assessment by the state office. The reboot, which was adopted by the state community college board, focused on cutting administrative costs and aligning course offerings with local demand.
It was the first restructuring of its kind for a Virginia community college, following a newly adopted state board policy to look at efficiency at each community college each year. Prior to the state’s review of ESCC, the community college was at risk of closing or being merged with another college.
In Norfolk, Tidewater Community College has endured cuts. The college saw full-time equivalent enrollment decline by half between 2012 and 2021. The decline in students led to a drop in revenue, which in turn contributed to several rounds of employee layoffs.
Many community colleges across the nation have shrunk their personnel size over the years as enrollment has gone down. Some states have completely restructured their community college systems to save money.
In Wisconsin, nearly half of community colleges have closed as part of a plan to merge them with state four-year schools. Connecticut has merged its community colleges into a single school with several campuses.
Dual-enrollment funding uncertain
At Mountain Empire, Westover had hoped the 2024 legislation known as College and Career Ready Virginia would result in additional funding.
CCRV sought to broaden access to dual-enrollment classes by prohibiting community colleges from charging tuition for these course offerings. Historically, community colleges have charged anywhere from zero to 100% of tuition for dual-enrollment courses. The majority of school divisions cover that cost for their students.
In 2025, $15 million was included in the state’s budget proposal to help the community colleges with dual-enrollment students administer the program. But an amendment redirected the money to other higher education purposes.
“The CCRV legislation was supposed to come with a pot of funding, and it ended up basically not being funded and became an unfunded mandate,” Westover said.
A subsequent amendment to the legislation delayed the implementation of CCRV until fall 2026. The program “remains unfunded at this time and inactive,” said Lee Andes, director of finance policy and innovation for the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia.
It’s unclear how CCRV funding will factor into the biennium determined by the upcoming General Assembly session, the first with Gov. Abigail Spanberger in office. Outgoing Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s final budget proposal did not include funding for dual-enrollment tuition.
Funding for dual enrollment varies from state to state, said John Fink, senior research associate and program lead at the Community College Research Center at Teachers College, Columbia University. “It’s very common, even in those states where it’s better funded, that colleges will still be losing money on offering dual-enrollment courses,” he said.
He compared dual enrollment to a loss leader in retail jargon: an item priced so low that it draws customers in the door, even if the retailer doesn’t make any profit on that particular item. In the case of dual enrollment, community colleges are making a strategic decision to attract students.
“It’s a way to … draw in students who might not otherwise go to college, but now, because they’re starting in high school at your college, they may come back after,” Fink said.
Some dual-enrollment students may already be college bound and looking to reduce the cost of attendance, he said. Dual enrollment can also open the door to higher education for high schoolers who don’t see college in their future.
Fink said there’s growing demand for dual-enrollment programs for career and technical fields, versus focusing only on general education courses for transfer to a four-year school. A CCRC study in Texas showed that students who took CTE dual-enrollment courses earned more money through their early 20s, versus students who only took CTE high school courses.
Increasing CTE dual-enrollment options that students can use to earn stackable workplace credentials is among the state community college system’s list of priorities for dual enrollment.
A bill introduced by Sen. Bill Stanley, R-Franklin County, would allow for school divisions to establish dual-enrollment courses in three areas: certified nurse aide, emergency medical services and firefighting.
Youngkin’s proposed budget for 2026-2028 included nearly $7.8 million annually for the development of workforce programs to address areas of high labor demand and low supply, including career and technical dual-enrollment courses.
Westover said she believes the changes at MECC will be successful, despite the uncertainty of the state funding for dual enrollment.
“Our goal is simple,” Westover said. “To emerge stronger, more focused, and ready to serve the next generation of students who will shape the future of our region.”