Portland Community College | Portland, Oregon

Enrollment at PCC Jumps More Than Six Percent

Photos and story by James Hill

Oregon’s largest post-secondary institution, is a little bit larger these days, after the release of the latest student enrollment report last week.

Portland Community College’s enrollment report after the end of the fourth week of winter term when figures are submitted to the state showed a college-wide enrollment increase of 6.4 percent for full-time equivalent (FTE) students. FTE is the total number of full-time and part-time students combined to determine a full-time equivalent student count. There was also a 6.5-percent hike in headcount, or total number of students attending classes at PCC. FTE increased 320 students. Headcount throughout the district jumped 1,978 students over winter 1998 to 32,644 students attending classes at PCC campuses, centers or other community locations.

This growth spurt represents the third winter in a row that PCC attendance figures have shown significant gains college-wide.

"We are certainly pleased by the continued growth and popularity of the college," said PCC President Daniel Moriarty, "but if the numbers continue to rise, we will need to redouble our efforts to accommodate for this new influx of students."

The two campuses showing the largest percentage of growth were Cascade Campus in North Portland up 8 percent in FTE and 9.4 percent in the total number of students, known as headcount and Rock Creek in Washington County, up 2.6 percent in FTE and 3.4 percent in headcount. The Sylvania Campus showed a slight decrease in enrollment, with a drop in both FTE (0.2 percent) and headcount (1.3 percent).

The increase in students, while significant, isn’t something that caught college officials by surprise. Enrollment forecasters concluded some time ago that the population increases in the metro area would likely show themselves in PCC enrollment figures.

"This (enrollment growth at Cascade and Rock Creek) is exactly as we predicted, but at a higher rate than we’d hoped," said Guy Sievert, PCC director of academic services. "That’s why with the (proposed) bond we were going to expand our resources there.

"For now we will continue to look at alternative ways of meeting those needs, but ultimately we will need a more permanent fix," Sievert added.

By campus, the enrollment figures are as follows:

Cascade Campus in North Portland, up 8.1 percent FTE, 9.4 percent headcount, 4,072 students total.

Rock Creek Campus in Washington County, up 2.6 percent FTE, 3.4 percent headcount, 4,931 students total.

Sylvania Campus in Southwest Portland, -0.2 percent FTE, -1.3 percent headcount, 11,132 students total.

Open Campus, which brings life-long learning, customized work force and short-term training to community locations throughout PCC’s service district, saw enrollment numbers shoot up 22 percent in FTE and 12.1 percent in headcount. In winter of 1998, 14,942 students were Open Campus enrollees. This winter 16,745 students are enrolled in Open Campus offerings, an increase of more than 1,800 students.