FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 1, 2008
Contact Ben Chambers, (770) 537-5756
WEST CENTRAL TECHNICAL COLLEGE TOPS 4,000
With the start of fall quarter classes today, West Central Technical College announces a record-breaking fall quarter enrollment topping 4,000 students for the first time.
“While some students are still working through our drop/add and late registration processes, our current number shows an enrollment increase of about 19 percent over last fall,” Vice President of Student Affairs Eddie Gore said.
Fall quarter of 2007 had a final enrollment number of 3,531, itself an increase of 17 percent over 2006.
President Dr. Skip Sullivan said when final fall numbers are determined – in a little over a week – enrollment could be up as much as 40 percent from 2006 levels. “Growth that comes that quickly is not without challenges,” he said, “but we strive to be a College that is centered on students. I believe that when you have 40 percent more students in the span of 2 years, you are doing something right. The increase shows that our efforts to make education accessible to all are paying off.”
Gore said the increases are across-the-board and not attributed to a single program or campus, but he won’t have final campus or program headcounts for another week. He said it appears the largest percentage increase may occur at the Coweta Campus – housed in Newnan’s Central Educational Center. CEC has a large high-school population involved in dual enrollment programs, as well as traditional adult students.
“It appears that the relevance of technical education is being realized by more and more potential students,” Gore said. “One group of students is high school age, taking advantage of dual enrollment to earn certificates for employment or for a head start to a diploma or degree. Many others students are seeking industrial and technical skills needed by the growing number of manufacturers in the west Georgia area,” Gore said. “Health services programs remain in demand, also.”
Sullivan said the downturn in the economy has definitely opened the door for some people to go back to school.
“When the job market softens, technical colleges often see enrollment growth because people who are unemployed or underemployed are seeking training for a new line of work,” he said. “If you work in a factory and get laid off, there may not be another factory job you can move into. Folks want to be trained for fields that are stable and growing. We offer an educational experience that is applicable to real people in the real world.”
A combination of economic factors and community needs are driving enrollment numbers, Gore said. “Our College is working to stay in tune with those needs and our efforts are underpinned by the quality faculty and staff that we have here at West Central.”
“I’ve been asked why we are seeing growth at these levels,” Gore said. “It is a combination of factors, some which we control and some we don’t. Our main job is to provide the education these students are demanding and to continue to develop the workforce that will drive the economy of our state.”
West Central Technical College, with campuses in Carroll, Coweta, Douglas and Haralson counties, offers over 90 associate degree, diploma and technical certificate programs of study. A unit of the Technical College System of Georgia, West Central last year served over 10,000 students including credit enrollment, adult education, ESL classes, continuing education and corporate training. In FY 2008, West Central was the fastest-growing technical college in Georgia.
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