By Rachel Nelson
The next few years are critical for Utah Valley State College, said Val Hale, who was hired Tuesday as assistant vice president for external affairs at the college.
Hale, former BYU athletic director, is now one of UVSC?s main lobbyists, and will help determine its role in Gov. Huntsman?s economic development plan, including helping to make it more competitive with other universities in the area.
?There are a lot of people who think this will be the largest institution in the state soon,? Hale said.
He said although enrollment in the college has hit a plateau recently, it is expected to jump from 24,000, reaching close to 40,000 by 2020.
Hale said when he graduated from high school, BYU was the school that served the needs of the community. Students who wanted to go to college and stay in the county went to BYU. Now, only one in 10 Utah County students goes on to attend BYU.
Seventy-eight percent of all people from Utah County who go on to higher education attend UVSC now, Hale said.
?Now that BYU?s mission is so much broader than Utah County, UVSC has become Utah County?s institution of higher education,? Hale said. ?I?ve become pretty passionate about this place. What I want to say to people is that, in reality, your children and your grandchildren will be coming here.?
What?s changed even more is how many students transfer from BYU to UVSC, Hale said. Last year the school had more incoming transfers than outgoing.
?There?s obviously more diversity here,? Hale said. ?That?s really a plus for some people. Plus, it?s a fun institution.?
When a national accreditation committee visited UVSC recently, members said the college was one of the most student-focused campuses in the country.
?You won?t see any big classrooms here,? Hale said. ?It?s very student-friendly.?
Part of that student-friendly environment means offering seminars and helping students market their ideas to the community. To coincide with the governor?s economic plan, Hale said a main goal of the college is for students to interact with business leaders, to start new businesses, to be successful and to stay here.
As for when UVSC will become a university, Hale said that?s up to the board of regents and the state legislature. It would mainly depend on adding graduate programs and degrees.
Judging from its recent growth, however, that could be soon. The school that used to be Utah Tech has grown tremendously in the last decade. Ten years ago the college graduated 19 people with baccalaureate degrees, Hale said. Last year 1,500 students received four-year degrees.
The school?s leaders are trying to recruit out-of-state students as well.
?We?ve gone to California and visited stakes to talk about UVSC and what we have to offer,? Hale said.
The college also offers in-state tuition for students attending school in the summer.
?What I would like to see is a student in any program from UVSC getting the same consideration for a job that a BYU student gets,? Hale said. ?That?s where I believe we need to get this school.?