BENTONVILLE -- Enough students at Northwest Arkansas Community College need housing in the area to warrant building a dormitory on campus that could accommodate up to 120 students, researchers found.
Vogt Strategic Insights released its study results to the college last month in a 141-page document. The firm suggested a building with 60 one-bedroom units, each of which could house two people and include a full bathroom and kitchen.
The firm's recommended monthly per-person rent is $525, or $1,050 per unit. That price would include furnishings and utilities.
The median monthly rent for a one-bedroom, one-bathroom apartment was $868 in December in the Bentonville and Rogers area, according to the study.
The study noted the relatively high demand for apartments and lack of student-specific options in the area.
"It is our opinion the project is supportable and can achieve a stabilized bed occupancy of 95% or higher," the firm's report states.
College officials requested the study in response to interest in student housing from some members of the Board of Trustees. The college paid $10,300 for the firm's work.
The survey results, however, don't mean construction of a dormitory is imminent.
President Evelyn Jorgenson said she thinks officials need at least a year or two to evaluate whether diving into the housing business is wise. The issue hinges in part on the impact of the covid-19 pandemic, she said.
Online education already was increasing in popularity before the pandemic hit. If more students turn to online classes, the need for additional buildings on campus decreases, she said.
"There will be a change to the way we do business and a change to the way we offer education," Jorgenson said. "And it was probably happening already, but I think the pandemic speeded some things up. It may be that residential institutions are going to find it difficult to fill those dorms or residence halls."
Vogt's report stated covid-19 so far had not had much impact on this fall's enrollment. The authors said they expect enrollment to remain stable over the next few years.
Enrollment last fall was 8,383, the highest for a fall semester since 2011. About 44% of those students lived within the college's taxing district, defined as the Bentonville and Rogers school districts. More than 29% were registered as full-time students.
Examples to follow?
A 2017 state law sponsored by state Sen. Jane English, R-North Little Rock, repealed the prohibition on community colleges constructing, maintaining or operating residence halls. Northwest Arkansas Community College officials have batted around the idea of a dormitory since. Some have visited community colleges in Missouri, Kansas, Texas and Oklahoma to better understand what's involved.
At least two of the state's two-year colleges have started building residence halls. Both schools' projects are slated to open this fall.
National Park Community College in Hot Springs, a school of about 2,500 students, is building Dogwood Hall, a $9 million, 50,000-square-foot residence hall that will house 180 students in 52 furnished apartments.
Melony Ritter, National Park's director of public relations and marketing, said demand for Dogwood Hall is in line with expectations for this point in the year. She couldn't provide an exact number of students who have signed up to live there this fall.
University of Arkansas Rich Mountain in Mena, the smallest two-year school in the state with 866 students last fall, is building four condominium-style halls to accommodate 138 students.
Northwest Arkansas Community College will keep an eye on the success of those projects, Jorgenson said.
"I think it would be wise of us to watch and listen and learn," she said.
Board reaction
Todd Schwartz, chairman of the college's board, said there's a lot to like about the dormitory idea, and he's open to exploring it.
Schwartz shares Jorgenson's concern about uncertainty surrounding the pandemic's impact. He also mentioned the college's Washington County Center, which opened in January and is not paid for. The college's foundation is still raising money for the $12 million project; it had raised $5.8 million as of January.
"I want to make sure we maintain our fiscal responsibility to all of our constituents," he said.
Trustee Joe Spivey, a former board chairman, said he appreciates the information in the study. Whereas some colleges build dormitories out of necessity for their students, Northwest Arkansas has a good number of apartments, he said.
"I see some upside to it," Spivey said. "But I don't see enough upside to warrant going into the business of putting in residence halls or apartments. Our enrollment is stabilized. It's even gone up a little bit. So we're not in a situation where we're having to attract students with residence halls."
A dormitory also would come with additional operating expenses, such as increased security and a food service program, he said.
Jorgenson is remaining neutral on the issue for now. She came to Northwest Arkansas after 16 years as president at Moberly Area Community College in Moberly, Mo., which had residence halls. She understands some of the headaches that come with dormitories, namely some behavioral issues among residents, she said.
"You've got to have policies in place, you've got to have procedures that you follow, and you've got to be prepared for the kinds of things that students might do," she said.
Campbell Hill, 18, just graduated from Greenland High School and plans to attend the college this fall. She said she'll do her classes on the main campus rather than at the Washington County Center. The center is closer to home but doesn't offer many of the classes she needs, she said.
The commute from her family's home to the main campus is about 35 minutes. While she sees how on-campus housing might be attractive to some, she wouldn't be very interested.
"My commute isn't that bad," she said. "It would be silly for me to live in a dorm."
Hill took a few classes through the college during high school. She chose to enroll because she likes the professors and the relatively low tuition, she said.
Students surveyed
Vogt Strategic Insights is based in Columbus, Ohio. One of its primary services is market feasibility studies for a range of residential and commercial real estate developments.
Jorgenson said she hired Vogt in part because the firm does not deal in construction and therefore could take an objective approach to the question of whether the college should build a dormitory.
"We told them, we're not leaning one way or another. We're not wanting you to give us a report that says 'x,'" she said.
The Vogt study considered area demographics, planned and proposed projects affecting the college's property and the strength of the local apartment market. It surveyed 41 apartment properties with 7,938 units, primarily within Bentonville and Rogers and 95.4% were occupied in December, according to the study.
The study also took into account student opinions through a 17-question survey answered by 341 people.
When asked about the importance of having the option of on-campus housing, about 32% said it was either important or very important. Another 21.7% said it was somewhat important.
Asked how likely it would be they would live in campus housing if it were affordable, 53.6% said it was either somewhat or very likely.
Affordable varies from one person to the next. When asked how much they'd be willing to pay to live within a mile of campus, 55% said they would pay no more than $500 per month.
That's an issue to board Trustee Mark Scott, who wonders whether the college can provide quality residence halls at a price students are willing to pay.
"That's an important question to ask before we go any further in this process, along with understanding the additional costs to the college," Scott said.
Scott, like other trustees interviewed for this story, said he wants to make sure the college is on firm financial ground before moving forward. The Vogt study provided valuable insights into the market conditions of the region, he said.
About 29% of students surveyed said they'd pay rent of up to $600 per month, while another 10% said they'd pay up to $700.
In other survey results, 59% said they live with either their parents or relatives. About 70% said they'd be willing to have at least one roommate to lower their housing costs.
The survey also showed respondents had strong interest in amenities such as a cafeteria, a full kitchen within their housing unit and close access to study and computer lounges.