Community colleges report boost in enrollment figures

JOPLIN, Mo. -- Enrollment in Missouri's two-year community colleges is likely to continue to increase as long as four-year colleges raise their tuition to counter cuts in state funding, community college representatives said.

Two-year colleges have seen a 10.9 percent increase in enrollment, from 78,817 in fall 1999 to 87,439 in fall 2003, according to figures from the state Department of Higher Education.

Enrollment in the state's four-year institutions has grown 6.9 percent from 120,507 to 128,781 students statewide from fall 1999 to fall 2003.

Tuition has increased at two- and four-year schools, but the rate has been higher at four-year schools, said James Kellerman, director of the Missouri Community College Association.

"I would guess that if someone was choosing between a community or four-year school, they would find it more difficult to go to a university" because of higher tuition, Kellerman said. "From a pure dollar standpoint, community schools are still the best buy in terms of affordable education."

Research indicates that 70 percent of jobs in the next 10 years will require post-secondary education, said Quentin Wilson, commissioner of the Missouri Department of Higher Education.

Two-year degrees, he said, will play a large role in that.

"There is a lot of opportunity for someone completing a two-year college degree, wanting to get a quality education at a reasonable price, and then transferring to further their education at a four-year school," Wilson said.

Crowder, a two-year college in Neosho, has seen a 52 percent increase, from 1,719 to 2,606 in enrollment since 2000-01.

The school's success stems partly from its low tuition. Fees are half of the nearest four-year school, Missouri Southern State University, said Crowder's president, Kent Farnsworth.

Both schools have hiked their per-credit-hour tuition, but Crowder has increased its fees only 29.5 percent, from $44 in 2000-01 to $57 for the current year. Missouri Southern's tuition has increased by 60.8 percent over the same period, from $79 to $127.