The mission of the Southern Virginia Higher Education Center (SVHEC) is to advance Southern Virginia’s economic potential through education, innovation, and collaboration.

By enabling the citizens of Southern Virginia to achieve “educational victories” in the form of for-credit degrees, certificates, and diplomas, and noncredit third-party industry-recognized certifications, the SVHEC is contributing to the long-term economic strength of the region.

SVHEC leaders, staff, and stakeholders believe:

 • in the power of education to transform the lives of individuals and the communities in which they live;

 • that collaboration yields creative solutions that leverage scarce resources;

 • in trying new approaches in order to meet changing educational and workforce demands;

 • in harnessing technology to improve educational, workforce, and research outcomes.

The Southern Virginia Higher Education Center (SVHEC) builds critical workforce capacity in Southern Virginia by providing affordable access to comprehensive post-secondary education and workforce training opportunities. Since 1986, the SVHEC has brokered unique academic and industry partnerships and leveraged resources to overcome barriers to economic advancement in this historically underserved rural region.

For decades, the region’s citizens worked in manufacturing and tobacco production, filling jobs that required a high school diploma or less. Both sectors shrank in the 1980’s, leaving a workforce with low educational attainment and few transferable skills. As other sectors emerged to lead the region’s economy, the need for post-secondary preparation became paramount. In response, the SVHEC (then known as the “Continuing Education Center or “CEC”) was established as a county-funded initiative to offer community college courses in a mobile unit on the grounds of Halifax County High School. A year later, the CEC became an off-campus site for Longwood University, allowing the Center to offer classes towards a four-year degree while still offering community college classes.

Two decades later, the region still lacked adequate access to post-secondary education and training. On July 1, 2005, the General Assembly established the SVHEC as an institution of higher education and a state-agency. The agency would serve as a collaborative "education facilitator" to connect the region’s citizens with degree-granting education partners. The Center’s name changed from the Continuing Education Center to the Southern Virginia Higher Education Center, and its focus became providing accessible, affordable education from GED to PhD programs through partnerships with degree-granting educational institutions that would bring their programs to the South Boston campus.

In FY 2018, the agency’s statutory authority was amended to allow the SVHEC to develop and deliver its own noncredit training programs for the purpose of filling programmatic gaps where no other partners were providing those programs.

With its education and industry partners, the SVHEC is providing individuals economic advancement opportunities and employers with a skilled workforce. This, in turn, is strengthening local economies and transforming Southern Virginia into a region where current industries thrive, new industries seek to locate, and individuals want to live and work.

The Southern Virginia Higher Education Center’s (SVHEC) highest priority is to increase regional educational attainment and workforce preparedness. This is accomplished through a multi-pronged strategy that includes:

· encouraging and supporting collaborations that address regional education and training needs by leveraging economic and educational assets;

· removing barriers and providing supports to ensure student success;

· maintaining a sound and sustainable business model; and

· anticipating changes to facilities, operations, and staff required for future growth.

Collaborations

Partnerships with For-Credit Educational Institutions:  The SVHEC’s longest-standing form of collaboration is its “turn key” model for degree-granting institutions who bring their programs to the SVHEC campus. The SVHEC provides technologically-advanced facilities and a full array of services including front desk, operations, IT, security, and custodial support. Through this partnership model, partners find it financially feasible to offer high-demand programs in southern Virginia and students are able to complete degrees and certifications without leaving home.

In FY 2022, new program offerings at the SVHEC included Danville Community Emergency Medical Technician program and Radford University’s Masters in Strategic Communications. The Southside Virginia Community College Practical Nursing program announced a return to the SVHEC after a year-long absence, and the SVHEC became the administrator of the Cardinal Program (formerly the Commonwealth Graduate Engineering Program).

Center of Nursing Excellence: The SVHEC’s Center of Nursing Excellence (CNE) is another example of collaboration and leveraged resources. The CNE serves a critical role in a region where most counties are designated as Health Professions Shortage Areas and/or Medically Underserved Areas. It is the region’s only healthcare training simulation center that serves multiple education, industry, and community partners. Through partnerships with for-credit institutions and industry partners, including Sentara Halifax Regional Hospital, the CNE is preparing tomorrow’s healthcare providers today. Providing access to advanced facilities, equipment, and simulation technology, the CNE enables students to acquire hands-on experiences and critical thinking skills in a safe environment.

In FY 2022, the CNE was given a “refresh” thanks to funding from Sentara Halifax Regional Hospital, Virginia Tobacco Region Revitalization Commission, Microsoft, The Chastain Home for Gentlewomen, and the Southern Virginia Higher Education Foundation. New high-fidelity simulation manikins and audio-visual equipment were purchased and installed and facilities were repainted.

The CNE also hosts the Southside Virginia AHEC, one of Virginia’s eight Area Health Education Centers affiliated with the Virginia Health Workforce Development Authority. The AHEC program is a federally funded initiative that aims to: (1) educate and train students to become culturally competent primary care health professionals who will provide healthcare in underserved areas and to health disparity populations; (2) increase the number and variety of primary care health professionals who provide care to underserved populations in Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSAs) and other medically underserved areas; and (3) recruit into health careers individuals from underrepresented minority populations or from disadvantaged or rural backgrounds. The Southside AHEC works to develop the region’s healthcare workforce through outreach, education and training, and scholarship support, serving a fifteen county, three city region.

Career Tech Academy:  In partnership with Danville Community College (DCC) and Southside Virginia Community College (SVCC), and three public school divisions (Charlotte, Halifax, and Mecklenburg) the SVHEC operates the Career Tech Academy (CTA) offering high school juniors and seniors high-quality technical training for in-demand fields, with the opportunity to earn college credit and industry-recognized certifications. CTA students spend half of each school day at the SVHEC campus in programs including Information Technology, Power and Energy Systems Technology, Welding, and in academic year 2021-2022, Automation and Robotics. Students who complete a CTA program during their junior year may enroll in the CTA Work-Based Learning Experience (WBLE) program in their senior year. The WBLE combines work experience in the form of a year-long internship, apprenticeship, job shadowing, or mentorship with classroom instruction and assessments in career and life skills.

Following the framework of the Virginia Department of Education’s requirements for Profile of a Virginia Graduate, CTA curricula incorporate the 5 C’s: Critical Thinking, Creative Thinking, Collaboration, Communication and Citizenship. CTA programs feed the pipeline to sought-after community college and four-year programs.

As of fall 2021, all CTA courses were dual enrollment and confer college credit. The inaugural cohort of Automation and Robotics students the began training in the new robotics lab in the SVHEC’s Innovation Center. In spring 2022, the CTA provided a classroom, lab space, and an instructor for the Halifax County High School (HCHS) Robotics students at the school division’s request. HCHS Robotics students attended class on the SVHEC campus for two blocks each day.

Partnerships with Industry:  The SVHEC’s Workforce Development team works closely with regional industry partners to develop and deliver high quality workforce training. The Welding@SVHEC, HVAC, advanced manufacturing, and IT Academy programs were all developed with industry input and support.

The Workforce Development team also crafts customized training solutions offered on the jobsite or at the SVHEC, depending on the employer’s needs. SVHEC customized solutions generally focus on advanced manufacturing and information technology but have met other training needs as well. In fiscal year 2022 the SVHEC collaborated with one of Halifax County’s largest employers to develop and deliver two training courses essential to the company’s business. With expertise in curriculum development and delivery in these areas, SVHEC Workforce Development enables businesses to save money and avoid lost production time when onboarding or upskilling employees.

As industry needs change, SVHEC programs are modified to respond to the changes. Planning is currently underway to add new courses requested by industry: training in aluminum and stainless steel welding will be added to the Welding@SVHEC program, while Cloud Administration and Introduction to Linux will be offered through the SVHEC IT Academy.

As valued stakeholders, industry representatives and business owners also serve on the SVHEC’s Board of Trustees and on advisory committees for SVHEC projects and programs.

Supporting Students to Ensure Success

The Office of Learner Success and Engagement (OLSE) is the first stop for most individuals who come to the SVHEC to enroll in for-credit post-secondary or workforce training programs. OLSE staff offer program and career information, provide enrollment services for SVHEC Workforce Training programs, and connect students seeking for-credit programs with SVHEC educational partners. Individuals may also receive referrals to the OLSE’s partner program, the Volunteer Literacy Program for tutoring and academic support or to onsite partner Southside Virginia Community College’s GED program.

OLSE and SVHEC Finance staff work together to provide information on financial assistance available for students interested in SVHEC Workforce Training programs, a critical service since these noncredit programs are not eligible for traditional forms of financial aid. SVHEC Workforce Training students may apply for scholarships through the SVHEC’s onsite partner, Southern Virginia Higher Education Foundation, the Region 8 Workforce Investment Board for Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act funds, and the New Economy Workforce Credentials Grant program among other sources.

The SVHEC ensures that working adults are able to pursue workforce training by offering both day and evening classes. Flexible scheduling also includes online options for some programs. SVHEC students and those enrolled with SVHEC partner institutions have access to computer labs and can connect to the SVHEC IT network.

SVHEC Business Model

Funding has the greatest impact on the Southern Virginia Higher Education Center's (SVHEC) ability to develop and deliver its products and services, and in turn continue to have positive impacts on regional economic development. SVHEC leadership continues to monitor and adjust the agency’s business model to remain on the path to sustainability. This is challenging at a time when higher education as a whole is experiencing dramatic changes including an uncertain economy and changing demographics that are adversely impacting enrollments. General operating funds, as well as funds for additional technology, program development, marketing, furnishings, and personnel continue to be the SVHEC’s primary need.

The agency’s state appropriation is and will continue to be the primary source of these operating funds. In addition to state funds, grants, and donations, the SVHEC receives operating funds from Halifax County and the Town of South Boston. The SVHEC also has a partner affiliation fee model to more fairly and equitably cover SVHEC resources expended in providing services to its education partners and students, and pursues grant funding as appropriate to support programmatic efforts.

Other strategic initiatives undertaken by the SVHEC to support operations and ensure the Center’s sustainability include: 1) increasing facility usage through marketing the SVHEC's meeting and conference facilities; 2) operating as a fee-for-service Pearson VUE™ Testing Center; 3) offering fee-for-service product design and development services through the SVHEC’s ProductWorks department; 4) developing and providing fee-based noncredit workforce training programs for in-demand industry-recognized credentials in response to industry need, 5) serving on a fee-for-service basis as the administrative arm of the Cardinal program, formerly known as the Commonwealth Graduate Engineering Program (CGEP); and 6) presenting an annual fundraising needs assessment to the SVHEC’s partner and benefactor, the Southern Virginia Higher Education Foundation.

Planning for Future Growth

A Master Facilities Plan was completed in June 2022 to identify and recommend facilities changes needed to accommodate future growth. The agency-level Master Technology Plan and department-level safety plans (Operations, ProductWorks, and Workforce) were completed or underway in FY 2022.

The Southern Virginia Higher Education Center (SVHEC) provides current, reliable, and sustainable technologies to meet the needs of students, faculty, partner institutions, and staff. The SVHEC campus includes three renovated historic industrial buildings in downtown South Boston that are interconnected with the SVHEC 10GB fiber optic LAN Infrastructure. These buildings house premier workforce training labs, classrooms, and meeting spaces with advanced technology equipment.

The Innovation Center (IC) hosts five labs including the Welding@SVHEC, Industrial Maintenance/Mechatronics, HVAC, Industrial Technology & Energy, and Automation & Robotics labs.  Additional general-use classroom labs in the IC contain high-performance Dell/HP workstations with Computer Aided Drawing (CAD), three dimensional (3D) printers, and high-tech, program specific equipment and trainers. 

The Bruce Street building houses the IT Academy (ITA) and the Center for Nursing Excellence (CNE). The ITA includes a 1,250 square-foot, student-operated data center equipped with hundreds of servers donated by Microsoft, network hardware gear, fiber optic and cooper network connections, a “sandbox” security experimental learning-lab, and two 24/12-seat computer repair workstation labs supported by three connecting computer classrooms.

The CNE’s simulation lab uses high-fidelity Laerdal manikins for clinical or surgical scenarios, a “debriefing” area equipped with video and audio playback of students’ performance during simulations, and three healthcare simulation labs set up and equipped to reflect actual practice settings (surgical, home, hospital). In 2022, the CNE equipment, technology, and facilities were updated with funding from Sentara Halifax Regional Hospital, Microsoft, the Virginia Tobacco Region Revitalization Commission, the Southern Virginia Education Foundation, and the Chastain Home for Gentlewomen.

The SVHEC’s ProductWorks is located at the Imperial Lofts building, two blocks from the main campus area. ProductWorks serves as a resource for regional manufacturers, providing design, planning, prototyping and small production run services. ProductWorks utilizes advanced technologies in Computer Aided Design and Computer Aided Machining (CAD/CAM) equipment and is connected to the SVHEC network with a 1 GB AirLink.

The SVHEC’s IT Network Operation Center (NOC), located in the Bruce Street building, has a 10GB fiber infrastructure and utilizes a virtualized server environment supporting local and cloud services, a campus wide wireless local area network (LAN) and a single gateway “BYOD” (Bring Your Own Device) wireless network controller. The NOC runs a single authorization network, supporting over 400 student computers in 17 computer classrooms. Laptops are available for check-out by students for daily use throughout the SVHEC campus. The campus as a whole includes 30 classrooms of varying sizes equipped with high definition (HD) digital audio-visual (AV) projection systems. All classrooms are outfitted with technology to support Zoom-type classes/meetings. The 80-seat tiered “executive classroom” is outfitted with dual high-definition projection, digital AV presentation technology. The SVHEC campus utilizes a Verkada security camera system and access control.

Through interagency collaboration, the SVHEC’s dual Internet service providers’ redundant high availability circuits provide access to multiple distance education classes from educational partners including Danville Community College, Longwood University, Old Dominion University, Southside Virginia Community College, University of Virginia, and Virginia Tech.

The Southern Virginia Higher Education Center workforce is susceptible to future brain drain associated with top leaders approaching retirement and the difficulty of replacing highly-skilled workers should they choose to relocate or leave. Succession planning and ongoing professional development are essential to mitigating these impacts. A recent agency reorganization continued streamlining and flattening the organization for efficiency and effectiveness. All full-time staff have now received project management training and are regularly called on to participate in cross-functional project teams. 

The Southern Virginia Higher Education Center (SVHEC) is housed in three facilities totaling 73,485 square feet. These buildings are former tobacco processing facilities that were renovated using historical tax credits and grant funds, including grants from the Virginia Tobacco Region Revitalization Commission. 

In the current appropriation act, general capital maintenance is funded through Central Maintenance Reserve. Because the SVHEC’s facilities were originally built in the 1800s, with one building renovated in 2001, the second in in 2010, and the third in 2019, access to facility maintenance and replacement funds is critical to maintaining the buildings’ mechanical and physical infrastructure.

TECHNICAL PROGRAM CHALLENGE:  The SVHEC has responded to employer demand for technically skilled workers by developing and delivering a slate of non-degree, industry-approved, stackable-credential programs. These programs are producing increasing numbers of in-demand credentials and putting Southern Virginians to work in well-paying jobs in the region. In spite of this success, however, maintaining these programs is proving to be a challenge. Unlike traditional, seat-based degree programs, technical programs require specialized and costly equipment, materials, lab spaces and instructors. Recruiting instructors that possess both technical experience and classroom competency is difficult.

In addition, because technical programs do not facilitate large enrollments, the amount of revenue generated is limited. Raising fees to a breakeven amount would price most program applicants out of the market. While programs like the New Economy Workforce Credential Grant Program are extremely helpful in reducing financial enrollment barriers for students, the challenge for the agency is finding a comprehensive way to sustain these in-demand, yet high-cost technical programs. Overcoming this challenge is vital in order for the agency to meet the growing need for skilled workers in Southern Virginia.

ABILITY TO MEET SALARY COMPETITION FOR TECHNICAL INSTRUCTORS AND STAFF: Recruiting and retaining technical instructors and staff, including ProductWorks and IT technicians, have become increasingly difficult as the agency is increasingly unable to compete with industry wages. While DHRM’s lifting of the 10% annual salary increase cap provides more flexibility, ultimately the agency’s budget limits its ability to compete with private sector salaries for technical instructor and staff positions. Industry demand for and ability to pay top wages for technically skilled workers will continue to grow. The agency’s ability to meet the competition for salaries is limited by budgetary constraints. Without sufficient numbers of technical instructors and staff, the agency’s ability to provide adequate access and support is at risk. 

PARTNER OFFERINGS:  Like the SVHEC, the agency’s degree-granting partners are adjusting to changes in the higher education environment. Both two and four-year educational partners are struggling to adjust to declining student enrollment and decreasing revenue, which have been further impacted by the pandemic. Rather than maintaining an onsite SVHEC presence, some partners have responded by relying on online education to meet the needs of students in outlying areas. While cost-efficient, this modality is not ideal for most Southern Virginia students who often lack the hardware, software or high speed connectivity required to reliably access online programs. Although recent signs hint at post-COVID enrollment recovery, the agency’s two community college partners have been the most impacted by declining enrollment. Each has experienced lay-offs and been forced to significantly reduce degree offerings.

PERSONNEL:  The SVHEC’s continued success is directly associated with maintaining the agency’s unique and talented complement of staff. Because the agency is small, however, the talent bench is not deep. Combined with the fact that 70 percent of the SVHEC’s key leadership is within five years of retirement, the agency is vulnerable to an approaching brain drain. Another personnel related vulnerability relates to the significant percentage (50 percent) of full-time positions that continue to be compensated through non-general funding – grants and other funding that is non-recurring and will expire in the next several years. The uncertainty of funding to compensate these full-time employees puts the SVHEC at additional risk of losing essential human capital. These are the individuals that drive the agency’s mission-critical programs and services. 

The Southern Virginia Higher Education Center’s (SVHEC) facilities, operations, and services are supported by both general and nongeneral fund dollars. General fund appropriation supplies approximately 70 percent of the resources required to operate SVHEC facilities and to provide personnel who (a) support SVHEC degree-granting educational partners and their students, (b) deliver customized workforce services to local and regional employers, (c) deliver non-credit credential-based technical training for in-demand regional careers, (d) stimulate awareness and interest in  STEM-H careers through K-12 and (e) provide applied research services to industry. In addition to the General fund appropriation, the Center receives state funds from the Higher Education Equipment Trust Fund, capital maintenance reserve funds, and the New Economy Workforce Credentials Grant program. Nongeneral funds are nonrecurring and are comprised of grants, donations, partner and tenant fees, and fee-based training and services. With the tremendous growth in programs and services being provided at the SVHEC, the demand on nongeneral funds continues to increase.

The Southern Virginia Higher Education Center (SVHEC) relies on the non-general fund revenues obtained through grants from both state and federal agencies, as well as private foundations. Other critical non-general fund sources are revenues earned through services provided such as training for industry workforce, facility usage fee, partner fees, and applied research services to industry. These revenues provide support for key personnel. Developing a skilled workforce and providing applied research services help in the economic growth necessary for the region and the Commonwealth of Virginia.

The statistics below show the magnitude of Southern Virginia Higher Education Center (SVHEC) operations and investments supporting education and workforce training activities during FY 2018.

The Southern Virginia Higher Education Center (SVHEC) serves customers in nine distinct but related groups:

1.  Higher Education Institutions - Public and private two and four-year institutions of higher learning – The SVHEC provides vital educational access to an under-served rural population through partnerships with degree-granting institutions. SVHEC partners include two community colleges serving localities to the east and west of the SVHEC, seven public universities (five working together as a consortium), and two non-degree granting institutions of higher education. Those non-degree granting entities and the SVHEC together form the Southside Higher Education Coalition.

It has traditionally been difficult to get four-year institutions to bring their programs to the SVHEC campus. In response, SVHEC leadership formed the “Partner 2.0” initiative, charged with developing strategies to increase educational access by bringing in demand degree programs to the campus. This initiative yielded positive results in 2022 as Radford University began offering a Masters in Strategic Communication at the SVHEC. Partnership 2.0 is continuing its work in the new biennium. More information about SVHEC partners can be found in the “Partners section” of this Strategic Plan.

2.  Higher Education Students - Partner-enrolled students - Through its collaborative relationship with public and private higher education partners, the SVHEC provides degree-seeking students access to higher education programs without leaving the region. The SVHEC’s for-credit education partners offer more than 100 degree, diploma, and certificate options, and provide enrollment, advising, and financial aid services to their students at the SVHEC.

Student enrollments nationwide declined significantly in fall 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and Virginia’s community colleges experienced steeper enrollment drops compared to four-year institutions. Enrollments are beginning to trend back up, but higher education is facing a shrinking college-age population and rising operating costs while competing with a strong job market. SVHEC’s degree-granting partners are employing a number of strategies to boost enrollments including the simplified and streamlined enrollment process implemented by the Virginia Community College System as well as increasing available financial aid.

3. Individuals seeking workforce training programs - The SVHEC facilitates, develops, and delivers noncredit workforce training and career development services with opportunities to obtain third-party, industry-recognized certifications. SVHEC staff analyze regional workforce needs, identify existing training resources, and connect individuals with the training programs they need. Where programs do not already exist, the SVHEC Workforce Development division works collaboratively with education and industry partners to develop and deliver programming needed. The SVHEC offers its own short-duration, noncredit training programs in which students may earn industry-recognized certifications in information technology, welding, HVAC, industrial maintenance/mechatronics, and will be adding new programs and certifications in the new biennium.

4. Student – Regional high school students – The SVHEC Career Tech Academy (CTA) provides high quality technical education for in-demand careers to high school students from three public high school systems. Students from Charlotte, Halifax, and Mecklenburg County Public Schools spend a portion of each school day at the SVHEC  and may earn college credit and industry-recognized credentials. Upon graduation, these students have three viable options: continue into an advanced credential program at the SVHEC, transfer into a technical community college associate degree program, or enter the workforce.

CTA’s program offerings grew from two at inception to five in academic year 2021-2022 and now include Information Technology, Energy Systems Technology, Welding, Work-Based Learning Experience (year-long internship, externship, mentorship, and apprenticeship options), and Automation and Robotics. This collaboration between the SVHEC, the local community colleges, and public school systems allows rural public school students to access training that leads to well-paying jobs.

5. Student - Regional Prekindergarten-twelfth (PreK-12) grade students - The SVHEC helps prepare the pipeline to post-secondary education and training programs by providing outreach activities, targeting students as early as elementary school. Working with regional public school divisions, higher education partners, and foundations, the SVHEC offers science, technology, engineering, math, and health (STEM-H) experiential learning opportunities to prekindergarten-12th grade (preK-12) students, reaching more than 7,000 student annually.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the SVHEC pivoted to distance learning options including Zoom to provide outreach. In-person outreach activities resumed in fall 2022.

6. Employer/Business Owner - Regional employers - The SVHEC provides workforce assessment, consulting, and customized training for regional employers whose sustained competitive advantage depends on a skilled workforce. SVHEC foundational and advanced skills programs prepare individuals with the skills employers need.

The SVHEC IT Academy (ITA) is an example of meeting employer needs for workforce training. In 2015, the SVHEC responded to requests from employers to address the regional shortage of skilled Information Technology (IT) workers by establishing the ITA with support from those employers and the Virginia Tobacco Region Revitalization Commission. In 2019, the ITA responded again to meet employer’s needs by expanding to include new, in-demand course offerings. Welding@SVHEC was also established at the request of regional employers (2014) and in 2022 will also expand newly-requested curriculum and course offerings.

The SVHEC Workforce Development team works with regional industry to tailor training to the employer’s specific needs.  Since completing a multi-year pilot "customized" training program meet the needs of one of Halifax County’s largest manufacturers (over 400 employees were trained), the SVHEC has developed relationships with additional industry partners seeking customized training. In FY 2022, two new customized training programs were developed for one of Halifax County’s largest employers; to date over 50 employees have come to the SVHEC for training in those programs.  Programs will be added as need warrants and as they align with the SVHEC's mission.

7. Manufacturing - Regional industry - The SVHEC’s ProductWorks advances regional industry's competitive capabilities by offering product design and development services as well as small production runs. ProductWorks staff work also with industry and university researchers to develop innovative design, materials, and advanced manufacturing techniques, and to subsequently move them into use by regional industry.

An example of these services is prototyping and fabrication ProductWorks provides for a locally-based, but nationally-known high performance automotive engineering and manufacturing company, TMI Autotech, Incorporated (South Boston, VA). ProductWorks staff is fluent in Computer-Aided Design/Computer Assisted Manufacturing (CAD/CAM) software and has expertise with advanced technology machining equipment, including three- and five-axis routers and a Computer Numeric Controlled (CNC) water jet, making it possible to produce parts efficiently and to specification for TMI’s high performance vehicles. Ability to acquire these parts quickly and in a cost-effective manner allows TMI to minimize the time to commercialization for its products. The number of ProductWorks’ business and industry clients is projected to increase in the next biennium with additional staff coming on board.

8. Organization - Regional organizations - Regional organizations, including businesses, localities, educators, community-based organizations, and professional groups utilize the SVHEC’s facilities for educational, civic, and community-building events. The SVHEC provides a reservation-based system and a full spectrum of services and equipment are available. The number of organizations using the SVHEC facilities is expected to increase in the new biennium with COVID-19 protocols relaxing and a return of community engagement.

9. Consumer - Attendees at regional organization events

Over 1,200 individuals annually attend events held by the SVHEC, its partners, businesses, community-based organizations, and professional organizations at the SVHEC. This number is expected to increase with COVID-19 protocols relaxing.

Turnkey operations: Facilities, technology, and support services

By providing “turnkey operations” for degree-granting partners, the SVHEC makes it financially feasible for them to bring high-demand degree programs to Southern Virginia. The SVHEC provides facilities, technology, equipment, and a complete array of operations services including front desk, operations, IT, security, and custodial support. Education partners have access to more than 100,000 square feet of technologically-advanced space including classrooms with networked personal computers and digital audio-visual projection systems, labs featuring advanced machining and simulation technology, and a tiered conference center with dual high definition (HD) projection systems and digital audio-visual presentation capabilities. Facilities, equipment, and services are continually upgraded to meet the needs of degree-granting partners and their students.

For-credit programming and student supports

By making it financially and logistically feasible for accredited education partners to operate at the SVHEC, the agency affords the region’s citizens access to more than 100 degree and credit-based certificate programs. Instead of leaving the region for higher education, southern Virginia students can complete in degree programs where they live and work.

Technical Training and Certifications

As the need for skilled workers in the region increases, employers are increasingly approaching the SVHEC to develop and deliver nondegree, certification-based technical training programs. The SVHEC's slate of programs in high-demand careers such as welding, mechatronics, heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC), and information technology enable the agency to meet employer needs. Training is offered on a compressed schedule, allowing employers to rapidly fill new jobs or upgrade existing ones. For program participants who are out-of-work, the compressed schedule also means getting back into the workforce quickly. Training is developed around real-world, practice-based exercises so program completers offer employers an immediate "value-add" when they are hired. Credentials are stackable and can be built up over time to increase job qualifications supporting a sequenced career path.

In the 2022-2024 biennium, the SVHEC continues to build capacity of its non-degree programs with curricular and equipment investments. The SVHEC is also working with its degree-granting partners to develop articulation agreements to award college credit to SVHEC training program students for industry-recognized credentials earned. Creating stackable credentials is another example of the SVHEC’s efforts to expand educational opportunities and access in Southern Virginia.

Customized workforce training solutions

The SVHEC’s Workforce Advancement team works with business and industry to tailor solutions to meet workforce needs. Customized training programs to address employer requested skills needs are offered on-site in the workplace or at the SVHEC Innovation Center with flexible scheduling to minimize production time lost to training.

Science, Technology, Engineering, Math, and Healthcare (STEM-H) Education and Career Outreach to Prekindergarten-12th (PreK-12)

The Southern Virginia Higher Education Center recognizes that developing strong education and career pathways is key to preparing individuals for living-wage jobs and building workforce capacity in Southern Virginia. To develop these pathways, the agency develops and delivers outreach initiatives, especially focused on high-need science, technology, engineering, math, and health (STEM-H) occupations, to the region’s PreK-12 grade students. In the post-COVID 2022-24 biennium, the agency is refocusing and redoubling increasing STEM-H outreach to reach more students.

Product Design & Development Services

The SVHEC’s ProductWorks provides affordable, business-boosting research and development services to help regional industry and entrepreneurs succeed. ProductWorks staff advise industries and entrepreneurs on technology adoption, provide short production runs and offer proof-of-concept services. ProductWorks also collaborates regularly with the Commonwealth’s research universities on a variety of energy efficient construction materials projects.

Facility and support services to business and community-based organizations

The SVHEC provides conference facilities, meeting space, and services on a fee basis for businesses and community-based organizations for conferences, meetings, workshops, training, and other events.

Performance metrics for the Southern Virginia Higher Education Center (SVHEC) demonstrate that the agency has adjusted and continues to adjust to the sea change currently impacting higher education. Prior to COVID-19, higher education was already experiencing pressure to adapt and remain relevant in an age of increasing costs, shifting workforce demands, and changing demographics.

The SVHEC had already begun to adjust its program and service mix to reflect this changing environment and had implemented new strategies to increase access without increasing partner costs. The agency invested in additional information technology resources to support streaming technology, making it possible to link students and instructors across multiple locations for a synchronous class experience. Prior to the pandemic, the wider availability of streamed classes across multiple sites allowed partners to eliminate redundant offerings. When the pandemic required that the Center close for six months, this strategic investment made it possible to continue serving students remotely. We also found that the instructor-led, streamed classes serve as a better educational option for many SVHEC students versus traditional asynchronous online classes.

Degree program enrollments across the country plummeted by fall 2020 due to COVID protocols, cessation or interruptions of in-person classes, and job losses related to business closures. Virginia’s community colleges were disproportionately impacted and this is reflected in the SVHEC for-credit enrollment numbers for fiscal years 2020 and 2021. It should also be noted that lower degree program enrollment has negatively impacted fees generated under the SVHEC’s partner cost share agreements. While the fees generated are minimal, (approximately three percent of total revenues) any decrease in funding affects the SVHEC’s ability to maintain operational standards. By fall 2021, the SVHEC’s for-credit enrollments began to rise again, a trend we expect will continue.

A second strategic initiative to address the workforce shift was underway prior to the pandemic: the SVHEC was developing additional noncredit, technical training programs and certifications to meet regional employers’ needs. Educators, legislators, employers and parents were rethinking the “college for all” mindset as college graduates collect degrees and debt but not jobs, while well-paying skilled jobs not requiring a degree were going unfilled in Southern Virginia.

By fiscal year 2019, the SVHEC’s Workforce Development team was making significant contributions to the region’s skilled workforce with students earning nearly 400 credentials in information technology, mechatronics, heating, ventilation, air conditioning (HVAC), welding, and Work Ready Foundations programs. COVID interrupted the agency’s technical training programs, where hands-on learning is critical to success, and impacted program completions and certifications earned in fiscal years 2020 and 2021. Enrollments, completions, and certifications rebounded in fiscal year 2022 and the agency expects to produce more certifications in the new biennium as programs are expanded to meet employer need.

A positive, yet unanticipated consequence of certifications attainment through the SVHEC’s technical training programs, is the tendency for non-degree students to continue their higher education pursuits into degree programs. As non-degree students succeed in technical training programs, they become more confident in their ability to perform in the higher education setting and more proficient in their job positions. As a result, many seek additional post-secondary opportunities in degree programs. The local community colleges are making this easier by developing articulation agreements that give credit for certifications earned in non-degree SVHEC programs.

Building the skilled worker pipeline begins by developing an early interest in science, technology, engineering, math and health (STEM-H) careers. In fiscal year 2022, the agency engaged over 7,000 public school students STEM-H career activities and events. The agency will continue to expand public school outreach in the next biennium.

As the region’s economy recovers, the SVHEC’s ProductWorks provides affordable services to help regional industry and entrepreneurs grow and succeed. ProductWorks’ machine centers and other tangible assets are located in a recently up fitted space in the Imperial Lofts building adjacent to the SVHEC campus. The number of businesses served is expected to rise again in the next fiscal year as ProductWorks continues to forge new relationships with wholesale and retail businesses, manufacturers, materials producers, and equipment manufacturers. Many of these new relationships involve consulting and prototyping services but ProductWorks also provides small run production services.

The SVHEC’s productivity measure reflects the most distinct impact that changes in the higher education environment are having on the agency – cost of providing instruction. Moreover, costs associated with delivering SVHEC technical programs (e.g. specialized equipment, materials, and certified instructors) is typically higher relative than those required to support traditional, lecture-based academic programs. This productivity measure, adopted by the agency in fiscal year 2019, measures the ratio of dollars spent on classroom instruction to course completions in the SVHEC’s technical training programs with the goal of capping increases to 2.5% annually. The measure was adversely impacted by the pandemic in fiscal year 2020 where inputs (dollars spent) continued but outputs (completions) were delayed until the following fiscal year. The ratio improved in fiscal year 2021 and again in 2022.  We expect to continue holding classroom instructional costs to a minimal increase in the new biennium.

The Southern Virginia Higher Education Center (SVHEC) works to increase access to affordable and relevant post-secondary education and workforce training in southern Virginia through partnerships with degree-granting educational institutions and through its own short-duration technical training programs conferring industry-recognized certifications. The SVHEC and partners use data-driven analyses based on current and projected labor market data and input from regional industry to ensure program offerings remain relevant. Where programs do not exist to meet identified employer need, the SVHEC works with industry to develop and offer programs.

Education and training opportunities are made affordable for the region’s citizens through the Center’s collaboration with Danville Community College’s federal TRIO grant team, the Southern Virginia Higher Education Foundation (SVHEF), the Commonwealth’s New Economy Workforce Credential Grant program, the Region 8 Workforce Investment Board, and the Virginia Department of Rehabilitative Services (DARS). The SVHEC also actively engages the private sector to support noncredit workforce training with tuition assistance for students demonstrating need.

This goal aligns with the agency's mission of "advancing the region's economic potential" by investing resources and efforts in the region's human capital.

The Southern Virginia Higher Education Center takes a collaborative and regional approach to developing strategies to increase the number of people seeking and obtaining higher education degrees. Increases in the number of post-secondary for-credit enrollments and degrees obtained will reflect advances made in removing barriers and improving access.

• The Southern Virginia Higher Education Center’s (SVHEC) “Partnership 2.0” Project Team, whose membership includes SVHEC staff and representatives of founding partners Danville Community College, Southside Virginia Community College and Longwood University, is charged with developing strategies to increase enrollments in for-credit programs at the SVHEC by:

• Assessing current educational access provided by partners at the SVHEC;
• Conducting a gap analysis to identify and compare regional educational needs with the programs currently offered;
• Developing effective and efficient strategies for filling these gaps by leveraging resources across the four institutions; and
• Maximizing the use of technology to increase access.

The Southern Virginia Higher Education Center’s (SVHEC) collaborative engagement with strong public and private education and industry partners will elevate regional citizens’ educational and workforce preparedness levels to meet industry's current and future workforce needs. Working from a new perspective on what “workforce readiness” means in today’s economy, the SVHEC works to advance and align the skill sets of southern Virginia’s citizens with current and anticipated employer demands. These strategic efforts will ultimately transform Southern Virginia into a region where current industries thrive, new industries seek to locate, and individuals can work in family-sustaining jobs.

Increasing the number of assessment-based, third-party industry-recognized certifications earned by southern Virginia citizens demonstrates translates to elevated workforce preparedness. These certifications demonstrate to employers that job applicants have tangible skills and are job-ready.

• The SVHEC’s Workforce Development department collaborates with higher education and industry partners to identify skills needed and to offer education and training programs to meet those needs.

• Where programming is not available to meet identified needs, the SVHEC develops programming to address the need.

• The SVHEC works to find solutions to reduce or remove financial barriers for students pursuing non-credit workforce training, since traditional sources of financial aid are usually available only to support for-credit enrollments. The SVHEC encourages industry to participate in developing workforce training funding assistance solutions.

Students must be adequately prepared from an early age in order to achieve post-secondary success. The Southern Virginia Higher Education Center (SVHEC) works to develop strong pathways for PreKindergarten-twelfth (PreK-12) grade students so that they can successfully transition to post-secondary education and training, especially in high-demand career areas of science, technology, engineering, math, and healthcare (STEM-H). Targeting students as young as elementary school-age, the Southern Virginia Higher Education Center (SVHEC) partners with regional education systems, post-secondary education and training institutions, and industry to increase students’ awareness of regional career opportunities and the education pathways to reach them.

This goal aligns with the SVHEC's mission of "advancing the region's economic potential" by priming the education and workforce training pipeline.

Outreach initiatives raise PreK-12 students’ awareness of science, technology, engineering, math, and healthcare (STEM-H) careers and educational pathways. When students are aware of career options and the educational to achieving them, they have the tools for planning their way forward to success. Increasing outreach initiatives increases opportunity for successfully strengthen education to career pathways.

• The SVHEC partners with three public school divisions and two community colleges to provide high school juniors and seniors access to high-quality technical training for high-demand careers through the Career Tech Academy (CTA). The CTA is a model initiative for strengthening education and career pathways. CTA students spend part of each public school instructional day on the SVHEC campus in training programs that lead to assessment-based, industry-recognized credentials, hands-on skills, and work readiness. After completing a CTA program, students are prepared enter the workforce or continue in a degree program.

• The Southside Virginia Area Health Education Center (AHEC), hosted by the SVHEC’s Center of Nursing Excellence, works to develop the region’s healthcare workforce through outreach, education and training, and scholarship support, serving a fifteen county, three city region.

• The SVHEC partners with the Institute for Advanced Learning and Research (IALR) to hold two regional Career ChoICE Expos each year to showcase regional career opportunities and connect students with employers. Students receive resource booklets with information about regional careers and pathways for entry. The Career ChoICE Expos reach 5,000 students annually.

• The Southern Virginia Higher Education Center (SVHEC) develops and provides other year-round educational program initiatives, including summer camps, in science, technology, engineering, math, and healthcare (STEM-H) at the SVHEC for Prekindergarten-12th grade students.

The Southern Virginia Higher Education Center (SVHEC) recognizes the importance of the advanced manufacturing sector to the region’s economy and through its ProductWorks division the agency endeavors to raise the sector’s competitive capabilities. Manufacturing, once the backbone of the regional economy, almost disappeared over the last three decades but is now returning. To compete successfully, manufacturing businesses need access to applied research knowledge, services, and advanced technologies that will enhance their capabilities.

This goal aligns with the SVHEC's mission of "advancing the region's economic potential" with innovative solutions.

The Southern Virginia Higher Education Center’s (SVHEC) ProductWorks division by providing businesses with access to applied research knowledge, services, and advanced technologies to increase their competitive advantage. Increasing the number of businesses assisted will increase the regional advanced manufacturing sector’s competitive capabilities and contribute to regional prosperity.

• ProductWorks provides design, prototyping, fabrication, and consulting services to the region’s manufacturers to bridge gaps in resources and knowledge and to leverage applied research knowledge and advanced manufacturing assets.

• ProductWorks collaborates with industry and university researchers to develop innovative design, materials, and advanced manufacturing techniques, and to subsequently move them into use by regional industry.

The Southern Virginia Higher Education Center (SVHEC) is committed to excellence in fiscal stewardship and fostering a long-term sustainable business model. Since its inception in 1986, the SVHEC has grown to become a vital economic driver, delivering educational and workforce benefits that reach beyond Southern Virginia to the entire Commonwealth. The Center’s ability to maintain and expand these benefits depends on adequate funding and good fiscal stewardship. Since becoming a state agency in 2005, SVHEC leadership has steadily improved the Center’s financial position and pursued a sustainable business model.

While the SVHEC’s current leadership has improved the Center’s funding model and financial position, achieving a long-term sustainable business model will require continued diligence, innovative thinking, and continual adjustment, especially in response to rapid and unforeseen changes to the business and economic environment. The SVHEC is committed to excellence in fiscal stewardship and fostering a long-term sustainable business model to meet its mission now and in the future.

Southern Virginia Higher Education Center staff practice good fiscal and resource stewardship in order to maximize post-secondary education and workforce training opportunities offered through the Center. The objective for this goal is to maintain the ratio of classroom instructional hours costs to course completions in the SVHEC’s Workforce Training programs, thereby contributing to the continued long-term fiscal stability of the Center.

• The Southern Virginia Higher Education Center has in place policies to ensure that all spending commitments are analyzed and reviewed prior to expenditure.

• The Workforce Development division reviews certification rates regularly to ensure that trainees are being prepared to the highest degree possible to succeed on the assessments.

• The Chief Finance & Operations Officer meets regularly with the Chief Workforce Development Officer to review expenditures versus certifications earned.

The Southern Virginia Higher Education Center (SVHEC) builds critical workforce capacity in rural Southern Virginia, a historically underserved region, by providing affordable access to comprehensive post-secondary education and training opportunities. For 33 years the SVHEC has brokered unique academic and industry partnerships, leveraging resources to overcome barriers to economic advancement.

By partnering with two and four-year colleges and universities, the SVHEC provides access to a comprehensive range of educational choices, from GED to PhD. In providing facilities and a full array of support services for for-credit degree-granting institutions of higher education, the SVHEC makes it possible for those institutions to bring their programs to Southern Virginia. Facilities available to education partners include classroom, administrative and meeting space. The SVHEC's Center of Nursing Excellence (CNE) also supports regional partner health professions training programs with high-definition simulation training.

The SVHEC Workforce Development division works with industry and educational partners to identify areas of unmet need in workforce training and where that need cannot be met by other institutions, the SVHEC develops and delivers the training. Students in the SVHEC’s Workforce Training programs earn industry-recognized, stackable credentials through SVHEC non-credit programs in welding, mechatronics, heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC), information technology, and work ready foundations.

Today's SVHEC provides access to post-secondary education and training access to approximately 1,200 partner-enrolled students annually and to 550 individuals enrolled in SVHEC noncredit workforce training programs conferring industry-recognized credentials. This is a sea change from three decades ago when residents of Southern Virginia had little or no access to affordable post-secondary advancement opportunities within the region.

Recognizing the importance of building the educational and workforce pipeline, the SVHEC Student and Partner Advancement division delivers technology, engineering, mathematics, and healthcare (STEM-H) outreach services to Prekindergarten-12th grade students in the region's public schools. Over 6,000 students annually participate in SVHEC outreach activities and events.

Through its Research and Development Center for Advanced Manufacturing and Energy Efficiency, the SVHEC support regional business and industry, providing human capital and advanced manufacturing solutions for design and production needs. The R&D Center also collaborates with the Commonwealth’s research universities on applied research projects in advanced manufacturing techniques and energy efficient building materials.

The Southern Virginia Higher Education Center (SVHEC) was created through § 23.1-3120 of the Code of Virginia. The SVHEC, previously established as an off-campus center of Longwood University, was continued as an educational institution in the Commonwealth to:

1. Encourage the expansion of higher education, including adult and continuing education and associate, undergraduate, and graduate degree programs in the region and foster partnerships between the public and private sectors to enhance higher education in the Southside region;

2. Coordinate the development and delivery of continuing education programs offered by the educational institutions serving the region;

3. Facilitate the delivery of teacher training programs leading to licensure and graduate degrees;

4. Serve as a resource and referral center by maintaining and disseminating information on existing educational programs and resources; and

5. Develop, in coordination with the Council, specific goals for higher education in Southside Virginia.

Through partnerships with the SVHEC's education, industry, workforce development, and coalition partners, and by providing a high quality educational facility with state of the art technology, support staff, meeting space and conference rooms for community, regional and state use, the SVHEC expands access to a broad range of post-secondary education and training programs for the citizens of Southern Virginia. SVHEC programs and services serve to promote economic development, economic vitality, and quality of life for the region’s citizens. 

Description of Major Products and Services

The Southern Virginia Higher Education Center (SVHEC) provides the following core services:

  For-credit programming that affords access to numerous degree and certificate programs through affiliations with accredited education partners and the SVHEC's partners in the Southside Higher Education Coalition;

  Support services including administrative, technology, custodial services, conference space logistics, and provision of information to students and educational partners;

  Programming and support for workforce training leading to third-party, industry-recognized credentials including welding, mechatronics, "heating, ventilation, and air conditioning" (HVAC), offered at the SoVA Center for Manufacturing Excellence (SoVA CME)  and information technology training, provided at the SVHEC's Information Technology (IT) Academy. The SVHEC's Center of Nursing Excellence (CNE) provides training and a full-service simulation center for education partners' health professions programs and industry workforce training.

  Customized workforce training tailored to meet industry needs and available on-site in the workplace or at the SVHEC Innovation Center.

  "Transfer of Technology" services through the SVHEC's Research & Development Center for Advanced Manufacturing & Energy Efficiency (R&D CAMEE) advanced manufacturing applied research and development services, including design, prototyping, fabrication, and training for regional business and industry;

  Outreach programming and support for programs to engage Prekindergarten-12th grade (PreK-12) in science, technology, engineering, math, and healthcare (STEM-H) academic and career pathways;

  Facility and support services to business and community-based organizations for conferences, meetings, workshops, training, and other events.

The SVHEC is equipped and staffed to support its current educational partners and their programs, with capacity to add partners and programs. The agency is a leader in advanced manufacturing training and applied research, and has made significant investments in this area.

The Southern Virginia Higher Education Center’s (SVHEC) facilities, operations, and services are supported by both general and nongeneral fund dollars. General fund appropriation supplies approximately 47 percent of the resources required to operate SVHEC facilities and to provide personnel who (a) support SVHEC degree-granting educational partners and their students, (b) deliver customized workforce services to local and regional employers, (c) deliver non-credit credential-based technical training for in-demand regional careers, (d) stimulate awareness and interest in  STEM-H careers through K-12 and (e) provide applied research services to industry. In addition to the General fund appropriation, the Center receives state funds from the Higher Education Equipment Trust Fund, capital reserve funds, and the New Economy Workforce Credentials Grant program. Nongeneral funds are nonrecurring and are comprised of grants, donations, partner and tenant fees, and fee-based training and services. With the tremendous growth in programs and services being provided at the SVHEC, the demand on nongeneral funds continues to increase.