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JALC enrollment goes up, credit hours go down

By Codell Rodriguez, The Southern

Thursday, August 28, 2008 3:00 PM CDT

CARTERVILLE - It's not much of an enrollment increase, but John A. Logan College will take it.

The college set a new fall enrollment record with 6,167 students, a 1.7 percent increase from last fall.

"We're always pleased with an increase because some colleges are seeing a decline in enrollment," President Robert Mees said.

But while the enrollment is up, credit hours dropped slightly to 58,916, a 1 percent decrease from last fall. Steve O'Keefe, director of community relations and marketing, said the drop in credit hours could be attributed to a sagging economy and higher fuel prices. He said while the enrollment is up, people cannot afford to drive out to the college as often and are therefore taking fewer classes.

He said this is evident with the college's West Frankfort extension's enrollment rising by 58.28 percent from last fall and online enrollment numbers rising by 43 percent.

"One thing that has been essential to our growth has been the online program," O'Keefe said.

The school also set a record for students who have previously received a GED before attending JALC, with 414, and the number of international students rose from 19 to 22.

Mees said the college does not have a major international recruitment effort but it does cooperate with Southern Illinois University Carbondale in offering international students housing if they want to spend their first two years at JALC.

O'Keefe said the percentage of students from in-district high schools also contributed to the increase. Forty-five percent of in-district graduating seniors are attending JALC. Carterville tops the list with 73 percent of the graduating seniors attending, followed by Johnston City with 62 percent of the senior class.

codell.rodriguez@thesouthern.com

351-5804