Idaho community college presidents tell House committee enrollment is up, wait lists growing and capacity needs immediate help

BOISE — Presidents from Idaho’s four community colleges told the House Committee on Education on Monday that enrollment growth, program wait lists and workforce demand are straining local capacity and that the colleges need state support for staff, facilities and program expansion.

College leaders — Gordon Jones of the College of Western Idaho (CWI), Dean Fisher of the College of Southern Idaho (CSI), Lori Barber of the College of Eastern Idaho (CEI) and Nick Swain of North Idaho College (NIC) — described similar themes: rising demand for health-care and technical training, long wait lists in licensed programs, and the need to hire and retain qualified faculty.

"We serve over 31,000 individuals per year," CWI President Gordon Jones told the committee, describing CWI as a young, growth-oriented institution. Jones said full-time tuition at his college equates to about $3,300 a year on average and highlighted CWI’s high job-placement rates and wait lists in nursing, automotive and welding programs.

College of Southern Idaho President Dean Fisher said CSI served more than 10,000 credit students last fall and that some programs face severe capacity constraints. "Our…