PHOTO PROVIDED / THE VILLAGE REPORTER
KEEPING COLLEGE AFFORDABLE … Northwest State Community College President Todd Hernandez (left) told Archbold Rotarians that he expects to end the current school year with more than 8,000 students enrolled either as traditional full- or part-time students, high school students participating in College Credit Plus coursework or the school’s largest program — workforce development. Some 40 percent of their students have their classes completely paid for through a variety of scholarships, employer tuition reimbursement or school district funding for students who participate in the College Credit Plus courses. The remaining students pay $109 per credit hour. The program was arranged by Rotarian Darin Seiler (right).
PRESS RELEASE – Northwest State Community College President Todd Hernandez recently told Archbold Rotarians that the college is serving a growing number of students, including high school students who can earn free college credits before they graduate as well as persons in the workforce who can earn various credentials through the school’s workforce development program.
In fact, the workforce program works with area employers to develop the offerings that their employees need. As a result, more than 5,000 of the 8,000 students who are expected to successfully complete courses during the 2025-26 school year participate in the workforce program.
Some 1,164 students are part of the College Credit Plus program and earn college credit hours before they even graduate from high school.
And 1,711 traditional students attend Northwest State, with just over 80 percent attending part time. Hernandez said the college offers degrees or workforce certificates in more than 60 programs, with many of the students participating in a two-year associate degree program that provides a pathway to a four-year college degree elsewhere.
Hernandez became the eighth president of Northwest State Community College in April 2021.
The college, he explained, opened in 1968 as Four County Technical Institute and became Northwest Technical College in 1972 before becoming Northwest State Community College in 1994.
Today, it serves six northwest Ohio counties: Defiance, Fulton, Henry, Paulding, Van Wert and Williams.
“Our mission is to serve by providing access to excellent and affordable education, training and services that will improve the lives of individuals and strengthen communities,” Hernandez said.
To become more accessible geographically to Van Wert and Paulding county residents, the college opened a full-service campus this year in Van Wert.
And to make the college affordable to its students, it offers more than $3 million in scholarships.
The president explained that 20 years ago a Henry County resident donated a large sum of money to establish a scholarship for any Henry County student who wanted to attend Northwest State. The principal from that endowment has never been touched.
Hernandez added that a similar scholarship is being developed for Fulton County residents.
The bottom line: 40 percent of the college’s students attend at no cost. Their tuition is paid from scholarships, tuition reimbursement by employers for employees in the workforce program, or school funding for the College Credit Plus program. For the remaining students, the cost is about $109 per credit hour.
The economic impact of Northwest State Community College? Hernandez cited a three-year study completed by Lightcast, an international organization that analyzes labor data, career and training needs and then measures the economic impact of aligning workforce development programs to meet those needs.
The study reported that Northwest State programming has boosted its students’ future earnings by $188.4 million at a cost of $46.9 million.
Further, that training will boost future tax revenue and savings by roughly $58.4 million at a cost of $13.2 million.
In both cases, Hernandez said Lightcast cited a benefit ratio greater than four times its cost to the community.