New College Institute committee adopts revised report on partnerships and board structure, forwards it to full board

The New College Institute committee on Monday adopted staff-recommended edits to a draft report examining enrollment trends, partnership options with Patrick & Henry Community College and possible changes to NCI’s board composition, then voted to forward the revised report to the full board for consideration.

The committee’s discussion centered on data cited in the draft (from the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia, or SHEV, and a JLARC review of community colleges), whether outside organizations had provided formal letters of support and whether background language in the draft overstated outside endorsement. "SHEV is the official, source and the source of truth for all higher education, data and statistics in Virginia," Chair Ashley Lockhart said during the review, stressing reliance on state data sources.

Staff officer Olivia presented the draft’s findings, which note that Patrick & Henry Community College’s overall enrollment has been stagnant or declining in recent years, even as participation in the Fast Forward…