Southeast Arkansas College’s student enrollment is nearing pre-covid numbers, President Tyrone Jackson reported at Wednesday’s board meeting.
SEARK has enrolled 1,052 part- and full-time students, an increase of 184 from the spring 2024 semester.
The college had enrolled more than 800 students for the start of the spring 2021 semester, less than a year into the covid-19 pandemic when the college recorded 1,160 students.
“A lot of it is attributed to one of the things I always mentioned when I got here: We must have aggressive recruiting efforts,” Jackson said. “Not just recruiting in the recruitment office, but every employee at the college is charged with recruiting students, so I give credit to my team, everybody working together in collaborative ways and Dr. John Proctor, who serves as the director of our group, he’s a go-getter and he works closely with the people internally and ensures that we’re all on the same page when it comes to the recruiting efforts of this institution.”
Jackson credited a rise in the enrollment of part-time students, which he said the college encourages.
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
Another factor is the increase in students participating in SEARK’s Prison Education Program, formerly known as the Second Chance Pell Grant program.
PEP is conducted in three state prison units in southeast Arkansas — Delta, Cummins and Varner.
Jennifer Colvin, dean of science, humanities and health professions, said 119 inmates participate in PEP, although that number fluctuates, she cautioned. Still, it has increased every semester since its inception about three years ago, Colvin said.
SEARK offers associate of arts and associate of general studies degrees through PEP.
Inmates who are Pell-eligible do not pay for classes, Colvin said.
“We have a coordinator, Mike Leach, who goes between us and the units,” she added. “We work in partnership with Restore Hope with him, and as far as growing the program, we really just got the information out there. People are flocking towards it. They’re interested in the program. It’s grown itself, but we’ve been diligent in getting the information out about the program.”
Donna Hunnicutt, SEARK’s vice president of instruction, noted the all-staff recruitment push as she updated the board on preparations for the Higher Learning Commission’s November site visit. SEARK is attempting to remove itself from a two-year accreditation probation the HLC handed down last summer for a violation of standards including completion outcomes, governance and administration, and systematic and integrated planning.
“Everyone is involved in the process,” Hunnicutt said. “You can stop anyone in the building and ask how they are participating.”
Hunnicutt said all evidence needed to identify any reported gaps in the accreditation process has been gathered, and an assurance argument is being written out at the moment. The argument, she said, takes into account the pointed violations.
The HLC is expected to conduct a mock visit soon, from which SEARK will receive a report within 10-15 days, Hunnicutt added.
Jackson also commented on the early cancellation of SEARK’s softball season for the second year in a row.
The college has not yet been able to complete a full softball season due to a shortened roster, as four players left before the current semester amid a coaching change, the college’s athletic department indicated Tuesday.
Jackson said current head Coach Jeffery Hughes has signed six new players for the 2026 season and expects six of the eight remaining players to return as well. The other two are expected to graduate this semester, Jackson said.
SEARK’s graduation is scheduled for 10 a.m. on May 16 at the Pine Bluff Convention Center.