It’s been a rough couple of years for Illinois community colleges, from the slashed funds of the budget impasse to concerning enrollment declines. This is part two in a three-part series on how these very different schools have stayed afloat by embracing change and, more importantly, putting the community in community college.
“The average student at Rock Valley is 24 to 25 years of age,” said Doug Jensen, president of Rock Valley College. “She’s female. They go to school part-time. She’s a working adult, she may even be a working mom.”
But there are fewer “average” students like her each year. Community college enrollment in both Illinois and throughout the United States has fallen in the last few years.
