Facing significant enrollment challenges as a result of the pandemic, community colleges nationwide have had to be highly strategic in how they market themselves to prospective students. Recapturing students while reaching new prospects requires creative solutions for meeting students' most urgent needs, such as shorter-term, more flexible options…

There is perhaps no perfect time for community colleges to build new facilities as the pandemic and other factors impact student enrollment. Fall 2020 admission at community colleges dropped 10% from a year earlier, according to National Student Clearinghouse data from December 2020, far outweighing the 1% decline in undergraduates at public and…

Research suggests that the appearance of a college campus--both inside and out--is a significant criterion in college selection. As community colleges are finding it increasingly important to attract and retain students, placemaking is becoming an effective and efficient platform to support recruitment and retention. Placemaking is imagining and…

As the number of two- and four-year college options available to community members grows, so too does the competition among institutions of higher education to land new students. Expectations are high. Today's students want more than a quality education. They also want a college with a service culture--one that works with them to create an…

It's an old adage: When the economy declines, community college enrollments rise. A fall 2009 report from the American Association of Community Colleges says enrollments were up nearly 17 percent compared with fall 2007. However, nearly a third of those students have already dropped out of college. Further, roughly half will not return for their…

Administrators of today's community college are sprucing up facilities with new amenities and services to attract students and cater to their needs. Administrators say competition for students is fierce and that good facilities can make a big difference when students are deciding on which school to attend. While students cite academic quality as…

Describes Iowa Central Community College's approach to enrollment management, citing seven keys to its success: (1) the president's personal leadership; (2) a college-wide commitment to excellence; (3) strong administrative support; (4) high expectations for personnel; (5) well-defined enrollment management strategies; (6) participation by…

Located 25 miles south of Chicago in South Holland, Illinois, South Suburban College (SSC) is one of Illinois's larger community colleges--and one of its more financially challenged. Because tuition dollars and the state reimbursement generated by student enrollment are key to a college's solvency, a slow, steady decline in enrollment was cause…

Describes the need for the use of public relations professionals in advancement units--structures designed to help community colleges meet the increasing demands of image development, enrollment management, and fundraising. Gives suggestions for creating and maintaining a public relations department that protects and promotes the college's…

This past year, Jobs for the Future studied strategies that community colleges are using to improve the quality and effectiveness of their services to low-income youth and adults. Much of this research was conducted for the MetLife Foundation Community College Excellence Awards Initiative. Across the country, in urban, rural, and suburban…

Among the principal assumptions that have governed enrollment management in community colleges for the past two decades is that the community college sector serves a distinctly older population than do other sectors of the post-secondary system. When the noted community college researcher, Arthur Cohen of the University of California-Los Angeles,…