College, Local Campus See Enrollment Jumps

Paulding County has played a part in helping Chattahoochee Technical College surpass a school-best enrollment record.

About 12,500 students were on the rolls for classes across the college’s eight campuses as the spring quarter began Monday. While slightly down from about 13,000 students Georgia’s largest technical college saw in the fall and winter, enrollment has increased by more than 900 students since this same time in 2010.

“Each quarter we are encouraged by the number of students making the decision to become a part of Chattahoochee Technical College,” CTC President Dr. Sanford Chandler said in a news release Monday. “We are appreciative of their trust in us and are dedicated to helping them reach those academic and professional goals.”

Preliminary numbers showed 12,499 students registered for classes either at one of the college’s eight campuses or online. That is an 8-percent increase over last spring’s beginning enrollment of 11,605. An estimated 1,384 new students, as well as double-digit increases at the college’s Austell and Woodstock campuses, make up this growth. Also experiencing a double-digit increase is enrollment in online classes, which now stands at more than 4,000 students—31 percent more than last year.

The college’s saw an enrollment growth equivalent to the jump seen schoolwide. Enrollment at the Paulding Campus is up 8 percent, or about 100 students, from 1,253 last year to 1,353 this year.

Other stats about the Paulding Campus and the county’s impact on the college include:

• 123 classes are being offered at the Paulding site this spring, including general education, business, criminal justice, marketing, accounting and early childhood education.

• The average age at the Paulding Campus this quarter is 29.37 years old.

• The Paulding Campus is made up of mostly Paulding residents – 62.8 percent. Cobb County follows with 24.4 percent, Douglas County 4.8 percent and Bartow 2.1 percent.

• More than 1,600 students from Chattahoochee Tech have a home address in Paulding County. That is 12.8 percent of the student population (third highest behind Cobb and Cherokee counties).

More than 580 students are taking classes at Chattahoochee Technical College’s newest campus. The Canton Campus, which held a few overflow classes last quarter, now has a schedule of 53 classes, including drafting technology, biology, math and other general education courses.  

Monday was also the start of the last quarter at CTC, as the college will join Georgia’s other technical colleges in transitioning to semesters this August. When classes for the quarter conclude this June, the college will offer a five-week mini-term for students before fall semester begins in August. With the deadline of that transition looming, students are preparing for the new academic calendar that will put them on the same schedule as more than 80 percent of the schools, colleges and universities nationwide, including Georgia’s K-12 and university system.

Officials say the benefits of a semester system will work well for the students. Longer instructional time with 15 weeks of class rather than 10, seamless transitions for those wanting to pursue four-year degrees and a calendar alignment that better supports dual and joint enrollment opportunities for high school students will be the most beneficial parts of the transition, according to Chandler.

One adjustment that prospective students will have to make is that applications will now be due in July to attend classes at CTC in the fall. While the later start date of quarters allowed officials to delay application deadlines until late August in the past, students will now have to have all applications, forms, transcripts and test scores in by the new July 29 deadline to be eligible to register.

“Change always causes a little worry,” Chandler said. “But our students, faculty and staff are prepared for this transition. We have been working on it for more than a year, offering advisement sessions for individuals and groups, special events to talk about the changes and provided information through our website and social media to answer questions they may have.”