Mountain Empire Community College is a comprehensive two-year college serving residents of Lee, Scott, Wise, and Dickenson counties, and the City of Norton. MECC is one of twenty-three colleges in the Virginia Community College System and operates under policies established by the State Board for Community Colleges and the Local Advisory Board. The College is financed primarily with state funds, supplemented by contributions from the local jurisdictions.
The Center for Student Outreach and Success (CSOS), a division of Student Services, is designed to ensure students have access to the services they need to be successful at MECC. The C-SOS serves as a one-stop shop on campus assisting students with the academic process and ensuring they are referred to the appropriate services needed. The SOS Center encourages students to walk in with any questions they may have. The staff in the SOS Center are trained to refer students to the appropriate offices or assist the student if appropriate. The SOS Center is comprised of the College Success Coach Initiative. The CSCI Program's primary focus is to serve their cohort students with one-on-one case management services to address barriers to success. When appropriate, the CSCI staff will assist students with referrals and provide backup advising services when faculty/Student Services staff are not available.
The College Success Coach is responsible for working with students to support and enhance their success in college. The college success coach will assist students in developing individualized academic plans, applying for financial aid and scholarships, identifying academic needs and linking to tutoring or other learning support resources, and providing follow up when risk factors such as poor attendance or low grades are evident. The College Success Coach will communicate with students in the target population on a regular basis and engage them in person individually and/or in small groups. College success coaches will communicate with college faculty and coordinate with student services personnel regarding students in the target population to ensure that they have access to college resources and support that will lead to completion of their academic program. College Success Coaches will capture appropriate data on student communications, interactions, and success strategies in order to strengthen the college’s use of College Success Coaches.