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Edison enrollment swells by ten
percent; Fall enrollment at Edison Community College increased more than any other two- or four-year institution in Ohio, Edison officials announced recently. The total number of credit hours taken by Edison's fall students soared 10.16 percent to nearly 22,000. No other college or university experienced a double digit percentage hike in credit hours. Headcount throughout the fall on Edison's main campus in Piqua and at the Darke County Center in Greenville has climbed to 4007. The majority registered for 16-week credit classes beginning at the end of August. Others have since enrolled in four- and eight-week sessions. This headcount also includes several hundred non-credit students served by customized business and industry training, special leadership courses, and new classes in Pro/ENGINEER and industrial plastics. Edison President Dr. Kenneth A. Yowell noted that an additional 100 students or so will be on campus for a compressed term of credit classes spanning most of December. Yowell cited several reasons for the growth including: · new programs in computer information technology · additional partnerships with four-year institutions · as many as six alternative ways to earn college credit · an enhanced, supportive learning environment · and more scholarships for students. Significant enrollment increases occurred among both traditional and non-traditional students. In fact, according to Yowell, Edison's enrollment among same-year high school graduates from Darke, Miami, and Shelby counties swelled by 20 percent. One of every three grads last June who went on to college this fall came to Edison, he detailed. "Simply put, we're a smart choice for these students and their families. Parents can reduce or eliminate higher education debt," Yowell pointed out. "Their sons and daughters can spend the first two years of college at Edison before transferring credits to the four-year school." The difference in annual cost at Edison and the average tuition and room and board at Ohio's four-year public institutions is approximately $10,000. "The savings is substantial," Yowell noted. "More than one thousand Edison students each year request to have transcripts forwarded to four-year schools. Our transfer programs are really popular." Edison is also an increasingly popular choice because of comfortable class enrollment and one-on-one instruction. "We're proud of the recognition we've received for our learning environment," Yowell said. "It is a measure of the quality of the College's programs." Edison earned top ratings in five of the state's seven categories for evaluating two-year campuses. "High school linkages" was one of these categories. Meanwhile, Edison has successfully reached out to more adult students with innovative classes that can be flexibly planned around their busy schedules. "Our new flex classes meet on campus about fifty percent less time than traditional courses," Yowell detailed. "And our distance learning online courses can be completed via the computer without leaving home." Edison also has in place several bachelor's degree completion programs with specific four-year institutions. These partnerships enable Edison associate of arts and science graduates to finish bachelor's degrees on the Edison campus or by studying online. Through other partnerships with Microsoft and Cisco Systems, Edison has created one-year information technology programs that prepare students for special certification in the high demand fields of network and computer systems engineering. A new associate degree program, Internet Technologies, provides four tracks for jobs related to the Web, the Internet, and private intranets. Students learn to design and manage web pages, design the communications networks, and run the accompanying hardware and software. "We constantly strive to meet the demands of employers with programs that teach the high-tech skills they need," Yowell said. In addition, 76 more scholarships were awarded to Edison students this year. Numerous business and industry sponsors and individual donors supported the scholarships through a major fundraising event coordinated by the Edison Foundation. Edison fall classes don't end until the week before Christmas. The local community college is one of only a few institutions in Ohio that introduces new classes virtually twelve months of the year. The big upswing in Edison enrollment bucked a trend statewide. Headcounts at public colleges and universities remained relatively flat around Ohio, with an average increase of about one percent being reported. |
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