Sinclair closing Huber Heights, Englewood learning centers due to low enrollment

Facilities were open for 18 years; Sinclair said enrollment surged around Great Recession, but fell as online classes, high school dual enrollment increased
Sinclair Community College recently announced plans to close its Huber Heights Learning Center amid low enrollment. AIMEE HANCOCK/STAFF

Sinclair Community College recently announced plans to close its Huber Heights Learning Center amid low enrollment. AIMEE HANCOCK/STAFF

Sinclair Community College has announced plans to close two of its satellite learning centers that have been open for 18 years — at 1150 W. National Road in Englewood, and at 7301 Shull Road in Huber Heights in a section of the YMCA.

Sinclair officials said declining enrollment at the two locations in recent years prompted the closures.

“Enrollment at both locations has dropped steadily over the past 10 years,” said Sinclair spokeswoman Catherine Petersen, who added that the COVID-19 pandemic accelerated this decline. “In addition, more and more students are opting to enroll at Sinclair in their high schools through College Credit Plus, in online/remote programs, and benefiting from Sinclair’s more streamlined curriculum.”

The Englewood and Huber Heights Learning Centers were first opened in 2006, the timing of which Petersen said was critical, as just two years later, the Great Recession of 2008 “forced thousands of unemployed adults to gain new skills for new career opportunities.”

At a 2010 event, Sinclair and city officials called the Huber Heights campus a huge success in a more intimate setting, with 1,200 students getting “access to high quality education in your backyard,” according to Sinclair President Steve Johnson.

As Sinclair Community College plans its exit from the YMCA at the Heights, the city is planning to relocate parts of its operations in the space. AIMEE HANCOCK/STAFF

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In Huber Heights, with the center’s Allied Health programs, Petersen said annual enrollments peaked at nearly 3,000 students. Yearly enrollments for the Englewood center peaked around 2,500 students.

But Sinclair officials said recent enrollments have been dramatically lower. Petersen said for fiscal year 2022-23, combined enrollment at the two centers was less than 200 students.

No courses are being offered at the Huber Heights location for the spring term, and the Englewood location has just one course this semester.

Sinclair will stop offering courses at the two locations in May, with full closure of the centers later this summer.

Petersen noted Sinclair’s regional centers in Centerville and Mason will remain open, of course along with the main campus in downtown Dayton.

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