De Anza enrollment continues to decline
June 2, 2016
Enrollment at De Anza College for the spring quarter was 19,587, a rate not only lower than the school’s average fall head count, but also lower than last year’s spring report, which recorded nearly 20,300 students, according to Foothill-De Anza Institutional Research and Planning’s enrollment report.
This drop of about 700 students is roughly 4 percent of De Anza’s total population.
As a safeguard, California gives colleges an opportunity to stabilize their enrollment numbers. In the event of an enrollment trough, stability funding would be put into place. If the stabilization is put into place, the district would be state- financed based on the previous year’s numbers.
students could notice fewer classes being available to them
— Marisa Spatafore, Associate Vice President of Communications and External Relations
“Students would not immediately feel the effects. said Marisa Spatafore, Associate Vice President of Communications and External Relations.“We would work to adjust the budget, insofar as possible, in ways that would minimally affect students. If enrollment declines persist, and in periods of state budget shortfalls, students could notice fewer classes being available to them.”
But if the number of students in the district does not return to previous levels, the state will begin to calculate funding according to the new, lower head count.
Typically, fall enrollment is a better indicator of any trends, but enrollment decline has well encroached into fall as well. Between Fall 2014 and 2015, enrollment dropped by roughly 700 students.
Typically, the number of students enrolled at De Anza fluctuates between 22 and 23 thousand.
“Enrollment fluctuations do occur, and are typically not dramatic,” Spatafore said, “We conduct frequent analyses, so if there are changes, we work to understand and address them.”
There have not been significant ramifications as a result of enrollment stagnation, but future funding could be threatened.
Most cuts to state funding have occurred as a result of state budget crises, rather than declines in enrollment. In these cases, there is often a slashing of select classes, which consequently may decrease enrollment, as many desist their enrollment in light of unavailable classes.