News

Southeast Community College's momentum continues with a spring enrollment of 11,191 students at all three campuses as well as its dual credit and prison education programs. The spring enrollment is up 6% from last spring and reflects SCC's ongoing commitment to meeting the demands of the skilled workforce through transformative educational opportunities.

"Over the last decade, we have really worked on our ability to expand our capacity to produce a skilled workforce," said Dr. Paul Illich, SCC president. "Our enrollment increase is a powerful reminder of the importance of ensuring everyone in our service area has access to the life-changing benefits of higher education.”

Of the total spring enrollment, 10,560 of the students are from Nebraska with 82% from SCC's 15-county service area. Lincoln's enrollment is 8,119 followed by Milford with 1,664, Beatrice with 1,246, and 162 students in the Prison Education Program. In addition, there are 4,091 students enrolled in career/technical fields and 3,817 in dual credit.

Building on this growth and in direct response to feedback from industry leaders, SCC will launch five new programs in fall 2026:

• Utility Line Worker (Associate of Applied Science): A hands-on program that trains students to install, maintain, and repair electrical power lines and utility infrastructure. This program will be in Beatrice.
• Hospitality Management (Associate of Applied Science): Students will learn the business and operational side of the hospitality industry in order to manage hotels, resorts, restaurants, and event venues. This program is in Lincoln.
• Culinary Communications (Associate of Applied Science): This program blends culinary arts and media/communications skills, preparing students to create food content for social media, food journalism (blogs), publishing, or broadcasting. This program is in Lincoln.
• AI in Business (Certificate): The concepts, tools, applications, and ethics behind Artificial Intelligence will be explored in this program. Students will explore how AI is developed and applied across industries for real-world problem-solving. This program is on all three campuses.
• English (Certificate): This program is designed for students looking to strengthen their reading, writing, and communication skills in English, often serving as a foundation for further academic or professional pursuits. All three campuses will carry this program.
• AVD Low Voltage Tech (Diploma): Students will be prepared for career installing and maintaining low voltage systems such as security, fire alarm, audio/visual, and dating cabling infrastructure in residential, commercial, or industrial settings. This program is in Lincoln.
  
  

"One of the things I get excited about when I think about higher education is the way we are able to build partnerships with local employers to create a skilled workforce,” Illich said. “These partnerships form a mutual commitment to making sure our students have the highest quality education before they enter the workforce. These new programs represent our continued commitment to listening to what our industry partners need and responding with educational opportunities that strengthen our communities and produce a skilled workforce."

Jennifer Snyder
Communications Specialist
402-323-3393
jsnyder@southeast.edu