Southwest Tennessee Community College Scoop Newsletter

Message from
President Tracy D. Hall

Dr. Tracy D. Hall

Dear Colleagues:

Happy New Year!  Welcome to another school year as we continue to transform the student experience and foster student success.

Fruits of our labor continue to emerge.  For example, fall enrollment is up for a second consecutive year with a 2.2 percent increase over last year’s banner year that snapped a seven-year decline in enrollment.  We are privileged to welcome 9,318 Saluqis to campus this fall.  That’s 204 additional students over last year’s enrollment. Awesome!

Our full time equivalency (FTE) is pretty much the same as last year with only four students fewer in FTE compared to last fall. This statistic indicates an upswing in the number of non-traditional students who are working adults attending part-time.  Our new SWIFT Weekend College program that allows business, emergency medical technician (EMT) and other students to complete a course in just three weekends is an excellent option for these new students. We also are well on our way to launching a new funeral services program that will be the only one in West Tennessee and the only publicly-funded program statewide.

I want to congratulate and express my deepest gratitude to faculty and staff for your tremendous efforts to push toward our big, audacious goal of improving the student experience at Southwest.  The new and returning students who are pursuing their dreams this semester and the innovative programs we offer are proof of your success. Congratulations!

The upswing in enrollment, the launch of the SWIFT program and the upcoming launch of the Funeral Services program are fantastic signs that we are headed in the right direction—up! The sky’s the limit.  I have you all to thank.

I have even more good news to share. We recently launched a webpage dedicated to sharing the outstanding news contained in the EMSI report The Economic Value of Southwest Tennessee Community College. I released this report during this year’s Fall Convocation.  Report results indicate Southwest contributes a staggering $126.6 million to the Mid-south economy in operations, student spending and alumni spending.  I encourage you to visit the new website where you will find the full report, the executive summary and other great data that will help us all communicate the value of Southwest.

Let’s have another great year!

With Saluqi pride,

Tracy D. Hall Signature

Dr. Tracy D. Hall