It was announced this year that H. Lavity Stoutt Community College (HLSCC) would begin offering internationally accredited four-year degree programmes, having received official accreditation. Photo: VINO/File

President of the H. Lavity Stoutt Community College (HLSCC) said it has recorded a major increase in student enrollment with 854 registered students for the 2026 Fall semester. Photo: Facebook

The 2026-2027 academic year at the H. Lavity Stoutt Commuity College is being held under the theme 'Time to T.H.R.I.V.E.'. Photo: Facebook/HLSCC

The H. Lavity Stoutt Community College has a cohort of students pursuing the Associate of Science in Disaster Management online for Fall 2026. Photo: HLSCC

Under the Minister for Education, Hon Sharie B. de Castro (AL), H. Lavity Stoutt Community College has seen funding increase significantly. Photo: HLSCC/File

This is according to the President of the college, Dr Richard E. Georges, who delivered his convocation address on Friday, September 18, 2026. He welcomed new and returning students for the 2026-2027 academic year, which is being held under the theme ‘Time to T.H.R.I.V.E.’

Historic year for HLSCC

The enrollment numbers represent a nine per cent increase from Fall 2025, a thirty-two per cent increase over five years and the highest enrollment since 2013. 

“In comparison, HLSCC has been outperforming US higher education enrollment, which is up just 1% from last year, and 10% over the past 5 years. That sounds like thriving to me.”

Dr Georges added that the college also made history with the launch of the Bachelor in Elementary Education with ten aspiring teachers who he called a “dynamic cohort”. The college also launched the new Associate of Applied Science in Hospitality Management and has a cohort of students pursuing the Associate of Science in Disaster Management online. 

HLSCC is also revising its General Education curriculum and developing a proposal for a three-year Bachelor’s Degree in Accounting. 

T.H.R.I.V.E. represents 6 priorities for HLSCC 

The college’s theme for the 2026-2027 academic year, ‘Time to T.H.R.I.V.E.’, Dr Georges said, is a bold statement given the current challenges both locally and internationally. 

“To see what looks like a harsh environment and to have the audacity to say we are going to thrive in it, but the cactus thrives in the desert, and moss thrives in the swamp. In every single environment that appears harsh or desolate, there is an organism that has figured out how to thrive in it. I submit to you that the conditions at the College are primed for us to thrive. The enrollment numbers for this Fall are proof enough.”

He explained that T is for transformational education; H is for high-performance teams; R is for revenue for impact; I is for infrastructure investment; V is for Virgin Islands value; and E is for empowered by data.

“These six priorities demand that we commit to growing this institution into something bigger – something audacious, ambitious, and awesome. They will close what has been a significant chapter in the life of HLSCC and open another towards what will eventually become the first public university in the British  Virgin Islands,” Georges declared.