There is an old axiom in post-secondary education: When the economy is in trouble, colleges can expect more enrollment. That is certainly the case at Central Georgia Technical College this fall. Unfortunately, there is another too familiar adage: In tough times, state officials will expect colleges to do more with less. That, too, is in evidence this academic year in Georgia.
As CGTC experiences a record enrollment of 7,007 students this semester (as compared with 5,587 last year), its campuses have reached a growth rate beyond the capacities of its campuses. Though the majority of students are in Macon, all of its locations are showing increased enrollment. The satellite campus in Milledgeville is booming, as are centers in Crawford, Putnam, Jones and Twiggs counties.
CGTC has compensated for facility issues by providing the largest number of online courses of any in the Georgia technical college system. It is also seeing a particular increase in younger (18 to 21) students. Both traditional and non-traditional students are flocking to technical colleges because of their lower cost, the practicality of their programs and the opportunity to learn new job skills in a concentrated period of time. They can stay home and save money in the process.
The educational offerings at CGTC are indeed wide and varied. They include business, health, information, trade and industrial technologies; public services; and adult education programs for basic skills development. Any of those programs can assist students in re-inventing their resumes.
At a time when money is tight, it is important to consider that annual costs at public two-year colleges tend to be about three times less than in-state public, four-year colleges. All of our public colleges desperately need more support from the state of Georgia if our populace is to thrive in the present and future. They cannot do their jobs as fully unless and until our state leaders and representatives must place more emphasis on the issue and on these concerns. Recognition of the importance of funding post-secondary education would be a significant step in that direction. As a state, we need to plan more effectively and set our priorities more sharply in the public interest.
As the economy continues to fluctuate as business and industry try to right the ship, we’ll see enrollment at post-secondary schools go even higher because of the highly competitive job market and the need for new job skills. As the enrollments increase and the influx of students continues, post-secondary campuses will continue to work to meet their needs by doing more with less in innovative ways in an effort to attain a better outcome for the future.
