Enrollment Up at Hinds College
Hinds Community College in Vicksburg, MS, sees an increase in student enrollment and sets a new record for student population.
Hinds Community College enrolled 13,000 credit students for the first time in history, a 10.9 percent increase over this time last year. Classes started Monday; late registration ends on Friday
The college has 14,133 “full-time equivalent” students, up 9.2 percent from this time last year and also a record for Hinds. Full-time equivalent is the number the state uses to fund each of the 15 community colleges and is based on a full load of classes being 12 hours.
Late registration extends through Friday, with longer hours today-Thursday, 8:15 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. The increases are even more significant when enrollment two years ago in 2008 is considered.
Hinds’ enrollment is up 28.5 percent, or nearly 3,000 students, over two years ago. That steep enrollment increase comes in the face of dwindling state dollars for Hinds and other community colleges, said Dr. Jay Allen, dean of Enrollment Services.
Zachary Cortez, 24, of Brandon, a Raymond Campus student, is at Hinds to “finish what I started” – a degree in graphic design. “I’ve got a little family to support,” he said.
Thirty-one percent of Hinds students enroll in a career or technical field such as graphic arts and earn a degree or certificate so they can get into the workforce quickly. Another 69 percent of the students take academic courses with the intention of transferring to a four-year university.
The top transfer major at Hinds is elementary education. Krisyatta Dobson, 18, of Jackson is majoring in business administration. “Hinds was closer to my house. It’s convenient to me,” she said.
Paving the way for more community college transfers, Mississippi’s universities agreed to standardize their academic core requirements for community college transfers last spring.
The same 30-hour core will be accepted by the eight universities, along with guaranteed admission for community college associate degree holders, provided a “C” grade or higher is received in each core course.
