Community colleges often the hardest hit as college enrollment among high school grads falls nationally

Community colleges have seen the sharpest drop among colleges in high school graduates enrolling this fall, a likely effect of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to an annual report published Thursday by the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center.

This fall, as the pandemic raged and California community colleges switched largely to virtual courses, they saw a 30% drop in enrollments. Last year, the decline was less than 1%. It’s a pattern reflected by early enrollment data released in Sept. by the California Community College system, the nation’s largest with 116 institutions serving more than two million students. That data found that enrollment in California declined between 3.8% to 20%, based on data provided to EdSource from selected colleges.

Among all high school graduates, 22% fewer students enrolled in college immediately after graduating from high school this year. The steep drop is close to eight times the pre-pandemic rate.

The decrease has particularly impacted graduates of low-income and urban high schools, plus schools with at least 40% of Black or Latino students, demonstrating the difficulties these students face as their families endure the pandemic’s financial impact.

Immigrant numbers

The report also indicates a sharp decrease in immediate college enrollment among graduates of high schools with high numbers of Black or Latino students. Compared to last year’s 30.5% immediate enrollment, the rate fell by eight points to 22.5% this year. At schools with lower numbers of Black or Latino students, this year’s enrollment rate was 32.3%.

While immediate enrollment decreased regardless of income level, it decreased at double the rate for students from low-income schools. There were also fewer low-income students enrolling immediately in public four-year universities.

“These effects align very closely with what we know about the disparate impacts of the pandemic and the recession on disadvantaged communities in urban communities,” said Douglas Shapiro, executive director of the research center, during a webinar Thursday where he discussed the report. “It’s a very discouraging confirmation.”

Gap reversed

The gains made last year to close the immediate enrollment gap between schools with high-income students versus low-income students have been reversed this year, he said.

While some students took a gap year or semester this year to avoid entering college under a distance learning format, some students are taking time off in order to work.

Across the state, students are faced with making similar tough decisions.

“The students that we serve — the gap year means a full-time job that now mom and dad can use the income and the likelihood of them going back is slim to none,” said Catalina Cifuentes, executive director of college and career readiness at the Riverside County Office of Education. “Our students don’t have necessarily that luxury to take a gap year.”

It’s an economic reality faced by students across the nation. “The requests that we’ve had from students for their emergency assistance needs, basic needs, food, housing has tripled,” said Stacy Lightfoot, vice president of an education nonprofit in Chattanooga, Tennessee, who spoke during the webinar. In California, food banks on college campuses also spent the spring and summer increasing the amount of food and basic needs supplies made available to students.