It has been tough to see budget cuts and changing demographics buffet Northwest College in recent years.

While many state agencies have been trimming what might be described as “fat” — reducing their budgets in a way that’s almost indiscernible to the public at large — NWC has been forced to make serious cuts. The elimination of another two dozen positions appears imminent, potentially dropping the college’s employment from a high of 245 people to roughly 175.

Meanwhile, NWC has had to grapple with a shrinking pool of potential students. While the Big Horn Basin’s population has grown a bit, the number of young people between the ages of 15 and 29 has sunk.

Between those and other factors, no community college in Wyoming has seen a steeper decline in enrollment than NWC since 2009.

To their credit, NWC leaders have been working to reverse the downward trend. They’re currently in the midst of an ambitious institutional transformation, which could include changing the name of the college.

Amid all of this, the college lost its president, as Stefani Hicswa moved on to Montana State University — Billings. The board of trustees initially planned to get a new leader in place by the fall, but opted to hit pause. It seems like a wise decision, particularly with so many unknowns about how the college’s transformation will shake out. Trustee Dusty Spomer summarized the current difficulty of recruiting a new president as, “If we’re not certain what we want, and if we’re not convinced about what this looks like, how are we going to convince anyone else?”

Another reason it made sense to wait is that the college has a more than capable interim president in Lisa Watson. She brings not only six years of experience at NWC, but also past experience as the interim president at Miles Community College in Miles City, Montana.

We’re pleased Watson has agreed to take on the challenging task of leading the institution through at least the 2021-2022 school year and feel confident she’ll serve the college and community well for however long she remains in the post.

In the meantime, we hope the trustees are willing to seriously pursue the idea of renaming Northwest College as Yellowstone College.

Hicswa strongly endorsed the idea at her final board meeting.

“I think it creates a niche for this college, together with interdisciplinary and academic changes that focus on the Yellowstone ecosystem,” Hicswa said of Yellowstone College. “That gives Northwest College something different that no one else can claim.”

In today’s competitive education environment, our college needs something to help it stand out. Especially as the pool of local students dwindles, pulling in students from outside the area will be increasingly important.

While local residents are intimately familiar with Northwest College and all it offers, the name can get lost among Wyoming’s other community colleges — which can read something like a list of directions on a compass (i.e. Eastern, Central, Western and the Northern Wyoming Community College District). Then there’s the fact that “Northwest” remains an imprecise description for the Powell area, as most people use it to describe Jackson Hole, too.

And that’s not to mention all the other Northwests in higher education, including: North-West College (a vocational school in Southern California); Northwestern College (Orange City, Iowa); Northwest University (in Kirkland, Washington); and the more famous Northwestern University (in Evanston, Illinois).

In contrast, the name Yellowstone College immediately fixes the location — and the breathtaking outdoor opportunities we offer — in the minds of prospective students across the globe. And the name is unique; there is no Yellowstone University to overshadow us.

Of course, a change is not without complexities, tough discussions, high costs and potential pitfalls, but we’re sure the trustees and Interim President Watson will diligently work to fully vet the possibility of a new name — and all the other changes that could be coming to campus.

We’re pleased NWC leaders seem to be committed to a focused and steady approach, because there’s a lot riding on the line for not only the college, but for Powell, Park County and the Big Horn Basin.