Sat Nov 07 2009
By JENNY DERRINGER
Summer school enrollment at area colleges is on the rise.
With fewer jobs available, many are heading back to the classroom to train for certain markets, officials say.
Among area colleges experiencing a significant increase in summer semester enrollment is Northwest State Community College, rural Archbold. President Tom Stuckey reported during a recent board of trustees meeting that enrollment is up by 32.5 percent for the summer semester.
Stuckey, who noted that the turbulent economy has played a factor in the increase, said that "people are beginning to realize that the jobs that are out there today and those of the future will require some form of higher education."
Stuckey also stated that tuition was lowered by approximately 4 percent to make an education more affordable for students.
Summer semester enrollment is also breaking records at Owens Community College, with campuses in Perrysburg and Findlay.
Back in 2004, school officials reported record enrollment of 7,533 for the summer semester at both campuses. Figures for this summer far surpass those numbers. Taking courses there this summer are 8,576 students (both campuses), up from 7,183 last year at this time -- or 19.3 percent.
Owens has seen amazing increases in enrollment since 1994 when enrollment was 2,538.
"Owens Community College is committed to ensuring that every student is provided with the necessary resources to succeed and achieve their educational goals," Dr. Bill Ivoska, Owens vice president of student services, said in a written statement.
Ivoska noted a reason for increased enrollment is four-year college students enrolling at Owens to take advantage of the course credit transferability.
Owens' distance learning education is also popular, allowing students to take courses online. For the summer semester, 3,871 students are taking online courses -- up from 3,238 last summer (19.5 percent increase).
A large positive growth in summer semester enrollment is also being experienced at Defiance College.
According to Kathy Punches, DC director of public relations and marketing, undergraduate summer enrollment is 229, an increase of 36.3 percent over last year. Graduate enrollment is 99, an increase of 16.5 percent from last year. This amounts to an average 29.6 percent overall increase over summer semester 2008.
"We believe a principal reason for the increase in summer enrollment is the struggling economy," said Punches. "Displaced and underemployed workers are taking advantage of opportunities to improve their marketable skills in the work force. Beyond that, more local students are choosing to enroll closer to home, thereby saving on the cost of their living expenses."
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Posted by tomfrost June 30, 2009
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All four of my daughters have taken community college courses, online, summer and regular. All graduated from four year universities two years ahead of their peers--with no debt. At least two of them found their "passion" at community college and now work in those fields.
We always had our kids take summer class at cc's. Generally they could get a semester's worth of credit in one summer...which is worth far more than they would have earned at a typical summer job. My wife, Maya Frost, recently had a book published by Random House called "The New Global Student: Skip the SAT, Save Thousands on Tuition and Get a Truly Globad Education". The book details ours and other's experiences in personalizing education and get the most value for the money. http://www.NewGlobalStudent.com. |
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