Ocean County College Overall Enrollment Dips Slightly

It looked as recently as Aug. 3 that enrollment at Ocean County College was due for a nosedive – down 9 percent.

Then administrators started beating the bushes for students. The result - enrollment is off less just half a percent, down for full time students, and up for part timers and those taking part in the Kean at Ocean program.

The sour economy is blamed for fewer students taking courses, although for fiscal 2011 the OCC Financial Aid Office has distributed more than $28.3 million to students.

A total of 13,361 students have received financial aid, according to Sara Winchester, vice president of finance and administration. Financial aid awards have increased 127 percent over the past five years and the number of students getting aid is up 57.5 percent, she said.

"It’s unbelievable,’’ she said of the ability to find aid for students.

She praised Dr. Norman Betz, OCC’s director of financial aid.

Vice President of Student Affairs Don Doran reported on the dismal enrollment outlook on Aug. 3. E-mail, phone calls, regular mail and text messages were used to connect with students who had not enrolled for the fall semester.

"Finances created the delay," Doran said. "There was a similar trend throughout the state. Many of the families are simply tapped out.’’

About 1,000 students from the spring semester did not return for the fall and Doran said they will be asked about that decision.

OCC President Dr. Jon Larson said 10,317 students are enrolled for the fall semester, down half a percent from a year ago. The full-time enrollment of 5,640 students is down 2.3 percent but part time students total 4.677, up 1.9 percent. The Kean-Ocean enrollment grew 7.26 percent, to 1,625, from a year ago.

"That’s larger than two of the community colleges’’ he said of the enrollment in the partnership with Kean University.