Community Colleges: Still Doing More with Less

More than two years into the economic downturn, community colleges—more than any other type of institution—are feeling the pressure to do more with less. Enrollments in community colleges have soared as unemployed Americans seek affordable, part-time education and job retraining, even as community college budgets have been shrinking. A survey conducted by the League for Community College Innovation and the Campus Computing Project in February and March 2010 of 128 community college presidents and chancellors found that headcount enrollments had increased at 94 percent of community colleges that responded, and more than a third of these enrollment increases topped 15 percent. Community colleges have responded to the economic downturn by increasing online enrollments, using stimulus funding to preserve instructional positions, and, in some cases, freezing enrollments for the first time.

FINDINGS

Enrollments

• Increases in headcount enrollments surpassed those of 2009; 31 percent of responding colleges saw enrollments increase by more than 15 percent; 32 percent saw gains of 10 to 15 percent. In 2009, only one-quarter of colleges saw headcount enrollments increase more than 10 percent.
•  In 2010, large percentages of colleges reported increased enrollments among full-time students (93 percent saw increases, versus 86 percent in 2009) and among part-time students (88 percent versus 81 percent).
• The number of community colleges capping enrollment increased from 9 percent in 2009 to 13 percent in 2010.
• More than nine out of ten presidents reported that their institutions had seen increases in enrollments for online classes; 31 percent of these saw online enrollments jump by more than 15 percent.

Budgets and Hiring

• The number of community college campuses experiencing budget cuts in 2010 more than doubled from 2009—from 7 percent to 18 percent.
• A smaller percentage of colleges faced mid-year budget cuts compared to 2009—54 percent versus 61 percent last year.
• The percentage of campuses experiencing hiring freezes declined—from 37 percent in 2009 to only 23 percent in 2010.

Coping Strategies

• The most common “coping strategy” among community colleges is increasing the number of online courses (85 percent), expanding online education programs (81 percent), developing new programs (77 percent), and hiring more part-time faculty (76 percent).
• About 66 percent of participating campuses received federal stimulus money; 42 percent used the funds to retain instruction positions, 32 used the funds to retain instructional support staff, and 25 percent retained administrative/clerical staff. Just 16 percent used the money to create new instructional positions or hire new instructors.
• About 62 percent of community college presidents agreed strongly that stimulus funding had benefitted their enrollments and programs; 55 percent agreed that stimulus funding had benefitted employment in the community.

The report may be downloaded in PDF format.

DID YOU KNOW?

• The types of community colleges most likely to cap enrollments were metropolitan campuses (19 percent), campuses enrolling 5,000-10,000 students (21 percent), and campuses enrolling more than 10,000 students (26 percent).
• Ninety-one percent of presidents reported that student demand—not an institutional effort—was the primary catalyst for the increase in online courses.
• The average amount of stimulus money received by community college campuses was $1.94 million.