CHARLESTON, W.Va. - The campus leader at West Virginia University Institute of Technology said despite struggles to attract students, a tough audit report and some people's perception of the campus, the Montgomery school is turning the corner.

During an interview Monday, Provost Scott Hurst said students will see a difference in services when they return to campus in the fall.

In 2006, state lawmakers passed a bill to bring in employees from West Virginia University's campus in Morgantown to help streamline financial aid, student records, course registration and other services. In large part, lawmakers saw a need to cut back on increased operational costs at Tech.

For instance, WVU Tech students will register for fall classes using the Students and Technology Achieving Results system that students in Morgantown have used for years. Likewise, they'll use the Mountaineer Information Xpress system for e-mail, campus news and more.  

Right now, students might not notice any of the "integration" changes, Hurst said. But this fall, he expects 85 percent of the changes will be in place with the rest to follow in 2010.

The total process has taken three years, Hurst said, which has burdened WVU Tech staff.

Last month, the Legislative Auditor's office released a report that said WVU Tech is losing money and students as the school struggles with an isolated location, high turnover and old buildings.

At the time, auditor Gail Higgins said told legislators that increased enrollment across all programs was essential if WVU Tech is to survive. Brian Noland, chancellor of the state Higher Education Policy Commission, has said WVU Tech clearly has to hire staff who can hit the road and sell the university to high school students.

Michael Mattison, the school's new dean of enrollment management, is developing a plan to attract new students to Tech, Hurst said. That calls for two new administrative jobs under Mattison, a director and associate director's position.  

Hurst expects the efforts to pay off by 2010. At best, he would only expect a slight increase in enrollment this fall.

In order to be solvent in the future, WVU Tech needs to increase enrollment by 459 full-time students, which would give the school about 1,459, Hurst said. The school could accommodate 2,000 full-time students.

In the past year, Hurst said some of the dollars that would have been spent on marketing and recruitment fell victim to two demands: the work required in Montgomery to integrate services with Morgantown and the effort to separate WVU Tech from its community and technical college.

There is also public concern over WVU Tech's future in Montgomery, which dates back to the failed proposal to move the College of Engineering to South Charleston.

People have even asked Hurst if Tech is going to be a school next year.

"We're not closing Tech," Hurst said. "My argument is it's the perception hurting us worse than the facts."          

Last month, the state auditors found that travel between Montgomery and Charleston might work against students enrolling at Tech, while the drive from Morgantown to Charleston takes about 2 1/2 hours less than it did 50 years ago.           

Some students don't mind driving a two-lane highway between the Chelyan bridge and Montgomery, Hurst said.

"They like where Tech is," he said. "They like it in Montgomery."  

WVU Tech officials are working with the community to revive the campus swimming pool, which has been closed for more than two years. Community residents and students could both use the pool, he said. School officials have other ideas to partner with Montgomery and the surrounding communities to bring businesses to the area.

In response to allegations of police brutality in Montgomery, Hurst said he personally deals with that issue and speaks to Montgomery mayor James Higgins on a regular basis.

Higgins told Hurst that procedures are in place to prevent future problems, which Hurst relayed to those on campus. He does not believe it's hurt enrollment at WVU Tech.

"Has it brought it to our attention to make sure it doesn't affect us? Yes," he said.

Reach Davin White

at davinwh...@wvgazette.com

 or 304-348-1254.