Enrollment in community colleges throughout North Carolina has risen for the first time in nearly a decade.
And that’s good news on all levels.
It also mirrors the trend at Richmond Community College (RCC) in Hamlet, which is also experiencing a surge in new students.
Statewide college enrollment climbed 4.4 percent in the fall semester compared to a year ago, according to a press release by the N.C. Community College System issued last week.
At RCC, the numbers were even better.
“At the end of the 2018-2019 academic year, Richmond Community College saw a 5-year growth in curriculum of 11% and in Occupational Extension (short-term workforce and economic development programs) of 81% growth,” said Director of Communication Wylie Bell, adding that these numbers referred to full-time students.
Across North Carolina, 53 of the state’s 58 community colleges had more students this fall than they did a year ago, the press release stated.
Driving the enrollment surge was a 9.4 percent increase in sign-ups for short-term job training programs and a 3.8 percent increase in the number of students enrolled in traditional academic programs, according to the college system.
Enrollment had declined statewide for nine straight years, a trend that system leaders expected as the state and nation rebounded from a severe recession. During economic recoveries, potential community college students often opt to get jobs rather than take classes. Some full-time students will go to school only part-time because they can find work.
“Our fall 2019 enrollment is stable for curriculum, and occupational extension is up about 24% over the fall 2018,” said Bell. “This is largely due to our focus on adding new short-term trainings such as the Electric Lineman program and the new Industrial Mechanics program at our Scotland County campus.”
And according to Bell, the college is not going to simply rest on its laurels.
“Starting fall 2020, Richmond Community College is adding an Emergency Medical Science (EMS) degree program on the curriculum side and expanding our Pharmacy Tech program through Workforce and Economic Development,” said Bell, or the ever-growing curriculum offered at RCC.
The enrollment increase “means more people are on their way to meaningful careers and brighter futures,” said Peter Hans, President of the N.C. Community College System, in a statement last week. “It means more people are recognizing the value and quality of a community college education.”
The state community college system said about 700,000 students enroll each year, many of them part-time.
