One of the themes at Virginia Peninsula Community College’s annual mid-academic year gathering Jan. 7 was growth. Leadership discussed the physical growth occurring at the College as well as its enrollment growth.
One of the major construction projects at the College, the renovated Mary T. Christian Theatre, was the site of the event, which brought together faculty and staff.
“It’s really nice to be home,” David Garrett, theater manager, told the audience.
The roof of the old theater collapsed in April 2021, and a rededication ceremony is set for Jan. 10.
Construction continues on the new VPCC Newport News Trades Center. College officials expect to have the certificate of occupancy Feb. 23 and start classes there in March.
About two-thirds of the 16,000-square-foot facility will accommodate maritime skills training and the other one-third construction trades training.
“We’re really excited about that significant expansion of our facilities for training,” said Todd Estes, vice president of Workforce Development and Innovation, who noted the facility is less than one mile from the front gates of Newport News Shipbuilding.
Estes added Southeast Newport News residents “will significantly benefit from accessible training, eliminating transportation barriers for those who may have them.” He also said the facility is “a great connector” between those residents and employment.
There certainly is a desire for more training as Workforce Development classes at the College have grown by 20% each of the past two years, according to Estes.
The demolition of Diggs, Moore and Harrison halls should be done in April, with the target date for the opening of the replacement building, to be known as the Academic and Student Success Center, in fall 2028.
“That is going to be a beautiful asset to our college. We’re really excited about that,” Estes said. “From a facility standpoint, we have a lot to be excited about.”
As for enrollment, VPCC continued its strong recent growth with 2025 fall numbers up and even exceeding their targets.
J.J. Bonavita, director of Analytics and Planning at the College, said the final numbers were 6,639 head count (HC) and 3,617 full-time equivalents (FTEs).
“That is a 3.6% increase in HC and a 6.8% increase in FTEs, which exceeded our goal of a 5% increase in FTEs this fall,” he said.
VPCC’s enrollment from summer 2024 through spring 2025, a standard reporting period, was the second consecutive year of enrollment growth.
“We’re headed in the right direction,” Estes said.
Bonavita was excited because fall enrollment growth at the College happened in almost every category:
- Dual enrollment was up 4.6% in HC and 9.8% in FTEs;
- Non-dual enrollment was up 3% in HC and nearly 6% in FTEs.
- Returning students were up nearly 5%, which included all students enrolled within the past three years.
- Transfer students combined, both VCCS and other higher education schools, were up 28%;
- Full-time students were up more than 13%.
“Taken all together, much of our growth stems from more students taking higher credit loads and an increase in students continuing or readmitting after stop out,” Bonavita said. “This bodes well for our retention efforts, though it is too soon to tell what our latest retention rates will look like.”
The numbers were down minimally in only two categories. There were four fewer new students (a 0.2% drop) and six fewer readmitted students (a 3.5% decline).
The student body at the College is becoming more diverse, with growth in nearly all racial and ethnic groups. The male population increased nearly 9%, while the female population remained essentially the same.
“Traditionally, about 60% of our student body have been female; this fall 55% of our students were female,” Bonavita said.
Spring enrollment, which has been open for a while, is looking strong, Bonavita said, with the College’s head count up 4% and FTEs up 8% at a comparable time to last year.
Estes credited the increase to several factors, including a diverse, flexible class schedule, staff presence at community events, and a revamped orientation process.
“All of those things are working,” he said. “The proof is in the numbers.”
All of which means the College is in a healthy financial condition.
“That’s something to be proud of because a lot of our peers can’t say the same thing,” Estes said. “A lot of our peers are under extreme budgetary distress. We’re not. We’re very healthy.”