Seminole, Valencia, Brevard, Daytona colleges among nation’s fastest-growing

Orlando Sentinel

posted by Luis Zaragoza on December, 10 2009 2:51 PM

We’ve previously reported that enrollment at public two-year colleges has been skyrocketing as the economy has tumbled.

The reason: a flood of displaced workers looking to improve job prospects by learning new skills, and traditional students looking to save some bucks by starting on the path towards a bachelor’s degree at typically cheaper two-year schools.

The immediate result: more crowded campuses and students left out in the cold because they waited too long to register.

As enrollment data becomes final, it gets easier to gauge other trends. Community College Week analyzes enrollment data annually and found several Central Florida college’s among the nation’s fastest-growing.

Among schools with 10,000 students or more, Seminole State College ranked 23 on the list of 50 fastest-growing schools with 10,000 or more students. Enrollment there rose 10.2 percent between fall 2007 and fall 2008. Daytona State College ranked 26, Valencia Community College ranked 37 and Brevard Community College was 39 based on enrollment increases of 9.9 percent, 7.9 percent and 7.7 percent, respectively.

Keep in mind that these rankings are based on 2007-2008 data reported to the U.S. Department of Education – a snapshot taken just before the economic outlook got really scary. So more recent enrollment data, once it becomes final, will likely show an even sharper spike.

Among schools that had enrollments between 5,000 and 9,999, Central Florida Community College, based in Ocala, ranked 26 based on an 11.5 percent gain. Polk Community College came in at 35 with a 9.8 percent increase.

Even though some of these schools offer four-year degrees, the magazine grouped them among two-year schools because the bulk of their for-credit academic offerings are two-year degree programs.