Clarendon College reports spring enrollment is down slightly following the 12th day of class last Wednesday, February 4, but contact hours, which determine CC’s state funding, were up slightly.
CC President Robert Riza said the strong economy in Gray County impacts the college’s Pampa Center with more students going into the workforce than pursuing education.
Contact hours for this semester were reported at 260,808, up two percent from spring 2014. Riza said Clarendon is one of seven community colleges across the state to experience growth in contact hours.
“The downturn in oil and gas didn’t happen strong enough or soon enough to impact our enrollment,” Riza said and noted that the college is also living with a declining population in its rural service area.
Total enrollment this spring is 1,070, which is down 4.4 percent compared to 1,119 at this point last year. The home campus reports the biggest enrollment with 321 students, up 9.9 percent from last spring. The Pampa Center has a headcount of 210, down from 317 last year.
The Childress Center reports 50 students, which is up from 44 last year; and the Amarillo Cosmetology Center has 55 students this spring compared to 33 last year.
“We have 75 commuters in Clarendon and the second highest dorm count in recent times,” Riza said.
The president said the increase in contact hours is the result of increased attention to career and technical training programs.
Riza said the college will launch its Industrial Technology Program in the second eight weeks of this semester, but those numbers won’t impact spring reporting to the state.
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