A new conservative-focused center at West Virginia University is off to a very, very slow start, with only a single student currently enrolled in classes at the institution. The ideological agenda behind the center and the lack of enrollment have critics complaining about the pricey center being forced upon the university, while conservatives continue to defend the endeavor.

$3 million university center attracts only one student so far

West Virginia Watch reported that only one student has signed up for classes at the Washington Center for Civics, Culture and Statesmanship at West Virginia University.

In 2025, Republican legislators mandated the creation of the Washington Center for Civics, Culture and Statesmanship, allocating $3 million to the center. Gov. Patrick Morrisey appointed Dr. Patrick Lee Miller, an expert in Greek philosophy, as the first director of the center.

Gov. Morrisey pledged that “Dr. Miller and the Washington Center are going to push back on the woke ideology that has infected our schools and help return higher education to its true purpose.”

Dr. Miller, speaking after his appointment was announced, referred to a “crisis” facing American civilization.

The legislation creating the center mandates that it facilitate studies of the U.S. Constitution and the “great debates of Western civilization.”

The center currently lists 18 available classes out of the 24 that were initially proposed for the fall 2026 semester. Titles of proposed courses at the center include “Woke,” “Nation and Migration” and “The New Right.” However, June 22 enrollment statistics show that only one student had signed up for three courses at the center.

News of the sparse enrollment has spurred strong reactions.

WVU political science professor Erik Herron said, “I do think that it’s important for the Legislature and for the governor to reflect on this. There is a question about whether or not this is the best use of public funds.”

Herron added, “I think the Washington Center, ironically, seems to be exactly what it complains that higher education has become. It was created in Charleston, and it was imposed on the university, so it’s a big government mandate.”

Democratic Del. John Williams, a WVU alumnus and one of the legislators who opposed the center, said, “I’m not happy about it. Now we’re in a position where we’ve allocated so much money toward this program, and only one person is taking advantage of it.”

Critics also point to the price tag associated with the center, including a salary of more than $300,000 for Dr. Miller, at a time when WVU faced a $45 million budget deficit that led to the university cutting hundreds of jobs, laying off faculty members and eliminating 28 majors.

Conservatives support WVU center as similar efforts continue across the country

Despite the criticism, conservatives in the state are standing by the center’s creation.

Republican House Speaker Roger Hanshaw, who co-sponsored the legislation creating the center, defended it.

“I’m not necessarily surprised that enrollment hasn’t begun to tick up … if it’s not part of what a student is majoring in or minoring in, then the students have to take courses that do fit those approved parameters,” Hanshaw explained.

He predicted enrollment at the center would increase once courses are approved for credit toward WVU majors.

“There’s a process by which those courses get approved and integrated into the academic structure to officially become part of a major … I think what we have here is an administrative process where the program just isn’t stood up yet.”

The creation of the Washington Center at WVU comes as Republican-controlled governments around the country have sought to fight so-called “woke” ideology by restricting progressive content or pushing more conservative alternatives on history and society.

In response to low enrollment at the University of Iowa’s Center for Intellectual Freedom, that state’s Republican-controlled government passed a new law requiring students to take American history and government courses at the center as a graduation requirement.

In Florida, meanwhile, a multiyear legal fight continues after the state passed a law championed by Gov. Ron DeSantis that restricted public schools and private corporations from offering instruction or training related to topics of race and sexuality. The Trump administration also continues its attempts to censor and whitewash American history at federal institutions.

As the push to rewrite history with a conservative pen continues, an effort at West Virginia University to promote conservative viewpoints is yielding very little in return for the millions being spent. With critics arguing there are better uses for the money being spent on WVU’s Washington Center, conservatives have so far stuck with the plan to promote a non-“woke” educational experience at the university.