Meeting Students Where They Dream
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YEP! GRANTS
Howard County, Maryland, has introduced its first Student Youth Engagement Leadership Workgroup and the first Youth Engagement Programming (YEP!) grants under an executive order by County Executive Calvin Ball. Comprised of over two dozen diverse young individuals ages 15-25 who meet monthly on the HCC campus, the workgroup develops ideas and strategies to address issues faced by the county’s young population. With youth violence and mental health concerns on the rise nationwide, the workgroup aims to empower young people to contribute to healthier, safer communities. The workgroup will conclude its efforts in September 2024, with feedback to support youth commissions and advisory boards serving county government on youth-related issues. HCC was also selected as a recipient of two Youth Engagement Programming (YEP!) grants: esports, and track and field. These grants aim to support the mental health, wellness, and social-emotional learning of young people while promoting leadership development through mentorship, tutoring, and specialized workshops. HCC’s esports team offers the Howard County YEP! Esports Clinic, a series of monthly gaming workshops held in HCC’s state-of-the-art esports competition room. HCC is the first Maryland community college to launch a competitive esports program, which has already captured a national championship and multiple conference titles. The YEP! Esports Clinic provides Howard County middle and high school students with the opportunity to enhance their skills and knowledge in competitive esports.
WELLNESS CENTER EXPANSION
Howard Community College received a $1 million grant from the Howard County Government to expand healthcare services at its Wellness Center. The grant will fund a three-year pilot program aimed at increasing the number of clinics and services offered by the Howard County Health Department on campus. The expanded services now include telemedicine, a wide range of contraception options, wellwoman visits, sexually transmitted infection treatment, HIV prevention (PrEP), and a dedicated exam room. The expansion will occur in three phases, with increased clinic availability, telemedicine visits, and a transition to a satellite clinic providing comprehensive women’s health services. This initiative aims to make healthcare more accessible to students, especially those facing transportation, insurance, or financial barriers.
COMPLETE4SUCCESS SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM
In October 2022, county and college leaders introduced a $3.5 million scholarship program called Complete4Success. This initiative provides tuition and fee coverage, emergency assistance, and training opportunities in critical industries for 2,000 eligible Howard Community College students. The program addresses the challenges students faced during the COVID-19 pandemic and aims to support those near completion as well as noncredit students seeking short-term training. In addition to the scholarships, County Executive Ball has allocated $1.2 million for essential student needs.
HCC RECOGNIZED INTERNATIONALLY FOR STUDENT SUPPORT AND PROFESSIONAL TRAINING
Howard Community College has been recognized as one of the top two-year colleges in the nation by several online college selection publications. Niche ranked HCC #92 among all two-year institutions and designated HCC as the top community college in the Baltimore metropolitan area. The college was also recognized as one of the top community colleges in the United States for international students by Study International, an independent platform specializing in resources for students seeking higher education opportunities abroad.
HCC’s inclusive environment, diverse academic programs, and comprehensive support services contributed to top-level recognition from WalletHub, which ranked HCC fourteenth out of 668 institutions nationwide. WalletHub’s evaluation considered factors such as cost and financing, educational outcomes, and career outcomes to determine these rankings.
Maryland’s community college system was ranked the third best in the nation, with HCC being named the second-best community college in the state.