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Enrollment Jumps Again at Fort Hays Tech | Northwest
Goodland, KS. (10/2/2024)
For the second straight year, Fort Hays Tech | Northwest experienced a noticeable increase in enrollment, according to latest report released this week by the Kansas Board of Regents.
According to the report, which provides a breakdown of enrollment across Kansas public higher education institutions, enrollment headcount at Fort Hays Tech | Northwest was up 3.7% from the same time last year. The increase marks the highest enrollment for the college in the past six years, and marks a return to the steady enrollment growth the college experienced prior to the pandemic. Current enrollment at the college stands at 752 enrolled students, with 577 students originating from within Kansas.
Looking back over the past ten years, the college has seen an overall growth of 16.2% in student headcount. Strong marketing and recruiting efforts, increased legislative support for technical education, the recent affiliation initiative, and growing awareness of the value of technical education are factors attributed for the ongoing enrollment growth. “We have an incredible team of people at the college. They’re all working towards the same goal of strengthening enrollment to meet the hiring needs of our industry partners” said Ben Schears, President of Fort Hays Tech | Northwest. “Each year we say that enrollment is everyone’s responsibility and each year our incredible team of employees rise to the challenge.”
Technical college enrollment growth is not only limited to one technical college, in fact, Kansas technical colleges have seen a staggering 59.5% growth overall in the past decade. As a sector, the technical colleges serve 11,517 students, up from 8,061 students a decade ago.
Over the past two years, Fort Hays Tech | Northwest, Fort Hays State University, and Fort Hays Tech | North Central banded together to launch a strategic affiliation focused on improving outcomes for students, communities and businesses with an express interest in connecting graduates with regional employment opportunities. The affiliation, which became official in July 2024, has undoubtedly had a positive impact on the college and will continue to strengthen the visibility of the college throughout the region and state.
Read full details of the Kansas Board of Regents report here:
