Fall Enrollment
I'm intrigued by what I think I'm seeing around enrollment, this fall. I don't have any formal, objective data, yet, so I may be wrong, but it certainly appears that branch campus enrollment is very strong, everywhere I've checked. For sure, university regional campuses, in Ohio, are up. The five Ohio University campuses increased by more than 1000 students, compared to last year, and the folks around the country with whom I've spoken or corresponded have experienced the same thing. Moreover, nearly everyone is telling me they are up more on FTE than on headcount, which means that students are enrolling in more classes. I haven't seen any significant news coverage about branches, but clearly community colleges experienced nearly explosive growth. There surely must be exceptions, but reading about increases of 20% or more isn't unusual. I've talked with community college leaders who are struggling mightily to find classroom space and instructors, to deal ...