Panola College Celebrates Opportunity Status, Record Enrollment, New SFA Partnership, Major Grant, and Tech Facility Launch for Fall 2025

Hello, Panola College community! Welcome back to another episode of our campus news podcast. Today is Monday, August 18, 2025, and we've got some exciting updates to share as we kick off the new academic year. First up, we're thrilled to announce that Panola College has been recognized as an Opportunity College in the 2025 Carnegie Classifications. This prestigious designation places us among just 60 community colleges nationwide celebrated for advancing student opportunity and achievement. Notably, we're one of only eight community colleges in Texas to receive this honor—and the only one in East Texas. This recognition underscores our commitment to providing students with greater access and pathways to higher wages upon completion. In other news, Panola College has strengthened its partnership with Stephen F. Austin State University by signing a Memorandum of Understanding. This agreement emphasizes the importance of earning an associate degree before transferring to a four-year university. Students who complete their associate degree here will qualify for additional scholarships at SFA. The partnership also offers guaranteed admission, up to 90 transferable credit hours, personalized academic advising, and special recruitment events to ease the transition for our students. We're also proud to share that Panola College has been awarded a $125,000 College Readiness and Success Models Grant by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board. This grant will support our ongoing efforts to improve developmental education reforms and implement innovative initiatives aimed at increasing student success. With these funds, we've expanded our Texas Success Initiative boot camp program to offer both online and self-paced options, allowing students to prepare for the TSI at their own pace. Additionally, the grant supports a scholarship program using Multiple Measures Assessment to help students enroll in credit-level courses, considering high school performance and other factors for a more holistic path to college readiness. On the enrollment front, Panola College has achieved a historic milestone for the Spring 2025 semester, with a total of 2,573 students enrolled in courses. This marks the highest spring enrollment in our 78-year history, surpassing the previous record set in 2017. This growth reflects the hard work and dedication of our faculty, staff, and students, and our commitment to providing an affordable education that equips students with the skills and opportunities they need to succeed. Looking ahead, we're excited about the progress on our new Energy Technology building. The $14.9 million project includes 32,000 square feet of indoor space and a 25,000 square foot working yard, housing a welding lab, engines and compression lab, shops, and classrooms for many of our technical and trades programs. Despite some weather-related delays, construction is progressing, and we're eager to see the impact this state-of-the-art facility will have on our programs and student success. Finally, as we begin the Fall 2025 semester, a reminder that classes start tomorrow, August 19. Late registration and schedule changes will be available from August 20 through August 26, with a $30 fee. Be sure to check the academic calendar for important dates and deadlines to stay on track this semester. That's all for today's episode. Stay tuned for more updates, and here's to a successful and inspiring semester ahead at Panola College!