De Anza College is making a comeback with only a 2.8 percent drop in enrollment as of Jan.21 this winter quarter, after a 9 percent drop in the 2004 fall quarter.
"I’m thrilled because we’re flat for the winter term, but hopeful that it will pick up 1 to 2 percent to make up for the fall," said Vice President of Finance and College Services Jeanine Hawk.
A serious enrollment drop could mean lost revenue for De Anza in the upcoming 2005-2006 academic year.
Each 1 percent decrease in enrollment means a $1 million decrease in revenue for the 2005-2006 appropriations. De Anza is projected to be down 3 percent for the entire year.
"If De Anza can recapture that 3 percent next year, our appropriations won’t be affected," Hawk said.
De Anza President Brian Murphy recently sent out a newsletter listing several reasons why enrollment is down.
He included several solutions to the challenge such as more outreach and marketing, shorter courses, retention of current and old students and a more active role for the faculty and classified staff. One program already in place to combat decreased enrollment is the extended registration period, enacted by the Enrollment Management Task Force in collaboration with Admissions and Records.
"This was the first time it was used and proved to be extremely helpful," Hawk said.She said that enrollment was up at during that time.
"The economy is also improving, so students now have a tendency to work more and go to school part-time or even not at all," she said.
The extended registration period lasted all through the holiday break up to Jan. 2, the day before winter quarter began.