Butler County Community College has the lowest student loan default rate among Pennsylvania's 14 community colleges, school officials said Wednesday.
Based on the latest available numbers from 2017, BC3 had a default rate of 8.8%, besting Bucks County Community College, which had the second lowest rate of 10.2%, said BC3 president Nick Neupauer during a board of trustees meeting.
“We're very proud of that number,” Neupauer said.
He said the financial aid office works with students to find the financing that suits them best.
“We don't just prepackage loans,” Neupauer said.
The default rate compares favorably on the national level. National averages are 15.2% for two-year colleges, 9.3% for four-year schools, 6.7% for private colleges and 9.7% for all schools, he said.
School officials said the default rate is one of several factors evaluated by the U.S. Department of Education, which subsidizes some loans.
In other business, Neupauer said nine cases of COVID-19 were reported among all campuses since the last trustees meeting in September.A total of 11 cases have been reported at all campuses since the fall semester began in August. The cases include four students and one staff member at the main campus in Butler Township, one student at the Cranberry Township campus, four students at the Lawrence Crossing campus in Lawrence County, and one student at the LindenPointe campus in Mercer County. The campuses have not been temporarily closed due to the cases, officials said.He said the college consults with Butler Memorial Hospital and the Pennsylvania Department of Health when cases are reported.
BC3 has received $940,000 in CARES Act institutional money and the same amount in student money.From the institutional money, $403,000 has been spent on technology and personal protective equipment to ensure that all campuses comply with federal and state safety requirements.
The trustees approved several faculty promotions. Tenure status was granted to faculty members Jolene Stieb, Steven Shaffer and Jennifer Taylor. Julia Carney was promoted from instructor to assistant professor, and Ivory Dunlap, Mary Beth Galante and Melissa Philson were promoted from assistant professors to associate professors.
