Williamsburg Technical College Welcomes

Largest Enrollment in 40-Year History

The parking lots are full down to the last parking space, and the classrooms are bursting at the seams, but these normally disconcerting issues are sights for the proverbial “sore eyes” of educators at Williamsburg Technical College.

The College has about 750 students enrolled this semester; the full-time student count is 25 percent over last fall.  However, faculty and staff are ecstatic over the influx of students and are, as always, pulling out all stops to help the students succeed in their fields of study.

According to interim president Dr. Cheryl Cox, “In these hard economic times we’re thrilled to be offering training and education in a variety of fields to the people of Williamsburg County that can improve their ability to get a job, keep a job, or win a promotion and improve the quality of their lives.”  Williamsburg Technical College currently offers degree, diploma, and certificate curriculum study opportunities in over 25 major fields of study and offers numerous continuing education opportunities in both personal interest and job-training.

The College’s dramatic enrollment increase this fall comes at a time of very limited state and local budget allocations; the College endured a horrific 25 percent cut in state allocations in 2008.  This reduced funding continues in the current budget year.  These reductions coupled with enrollment growth are forcing the college to do more with much, much less. 

College leadership is working to review how space is used on campus so that more courses and more choices will be available to students this spring and into the fall.  The college is pursuing funding to increase and expand programs to prepare the workforce for high demand areas such as health care occupations, industrial occupations like welding and machine tool, and the emerging opportunities in “green jobs”.

Discussions are ongoing between the College and  county council, district school officials, and state and federal agencies and legislators to ensure that the only institution of higher learning in Williamsburg County has funding enough to continue serving the rising student population and, consequently, improve the county’s economy and the citizens’ quality of life.

For information on applying to Williamsburg Technical College for the Spring 2010 semester, call 843.355.4165 or go to www.wiltech.edu.