AWC's enrollment grows by nearly 12 percent

Thanks in part to a streamlined search tool that made online registration easier, Arizona Western College enrollment grew by 11.8 percent this year over the spring of 2008, a school official said.

  "Obviously there's more interest in the community to take more classes and they look at going for a degree or increasing their skills level at their present occupation," said Dean of Instruction Linda Elliot-Nelson.

  The streamlined search tool has been available for several years but AWC Web designers have made it much more user friendly, Elliot-Nelson said. The Web page can be accessed at: www.azwestern.edu. Once at the site users need to click on "schedule of classes" and a menu appears that shows specific areas of interest.

  "It pops up right in front of you and has the blue rectangle and you see all the different options you have," Elliot-Nelson said.

  For example, if a student wants only weekend courses or weekend courses on the main campus, that way he or she can choose courses at a particular location, for days, nights or online only, if they prefer, she noted.

  "In fact we have all our summer and fall classes listed on the Web," Elliot-Nelson said. "Students can arrange family or work schedules around classes they could take."

  In general, community college is more affordable, convenient and available than four-year universities, Elliot-Nelson said. Anyone thinking of taking classes at AWC can register in a relatively short period of time.

  Also, because of multiple sites, classes are more easily accessible and schedules lend themselves to "flex-time" that can be set to suit the individual.

"Late-start" courses, ones that begin after the semester starts allows students to complete classes even after the school calendar has commenced.

  AWC added more than 100 courses for spring 2009 that were made available to students registering in December and January, which focused on popular and quick-to-fill core classes, Elliot-Nelson said.

  "Especially now with tuition so high many families make the decision to have a child go the first two years at a community college than a four-year university which is more expensive," Elliot-Nelson said. "Especially for Yuma students, they can remain at home and avoid the expense of a dorm or an apartment while earning a high-quality education."

  Associate deans have increased the number of sections in the areas where it has been demonstrated that students have a particular demand, Elliot-Nelson said. Biology has been popular, especially for those considering a nursing career. Meanwhile, psychology, sociology, philosophy, and history are all equally popular because they are required to earn an associate degree.

  With more than 12,000 students, AWC serves a 10,000 mile square district including Yuma and La Paz counties. And because of a $74 million bond initiative that passed with overwhelming approval in 2004 new facilities have opened or are about to in San Luis, Yuma Main Campus, Quartzsite and Parker, she said.

  "The bond increased our base significantly so the footage of the classrooms increased and that enabled us to schedule more classes," Elliot-Nelson said.

  During the prior dozen years AWC has added 300,000 square feet of new facilities at all its sites. Some of those that recently opened include the Watson Child Development Learning lab, the Agriculture and Science Complex, and the College Community Center.

  "We're always increasing our enrollment because our population in Yuma is growing as well," Elliot-Nelson said. "Our mission is life-long learning and we want to continue to serve the needs of the community."

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William Roller can be reached at wroller@yumasun.com or 539-6858.