Campus Builds, but Enrollment Steady : Growth Spree at Cal State

The sounds of hammers and heavy equipment signal a new expansion this fall on the campus of Cal State Fullerton, where enrollment growth, however, is zero. Both trends delight university officials.

The construction means more facilities for an overcrowded campus. And the absence of a jump in enrollment--something the university usually experiences in the fall--is welcome because state budget cutbacks have forced Cal State Fullerton to place a lid on 1988-89 enrollment.

Initial figures this fall indicate that enrollment has remained steady, James Blackburn, dean of admissions and records, said. “We had 24,416 students last fall, and I think that is about what we will wind up with this fall. I’d be very happy if we don’t show any more than that.”

Jack W. Coleman, vice president of academic affairs, said the Legislature gave the California State University system only a 2.8% increase in funds for this school year over last. That was insufficient to allow enrollment growth and maintain quality, he explained.

Still, Cal State Fullerton has more students than any other four-year campus in Orange County.

And although its number of students is holding steady this fall, Cal State’s building program has taken a big leap.

Projects under way or planned for construction are:

- The Ruby Gerontology Center, a $2.5-million facility for study of the aging, scheduled to open on Oct. 2. The project, which was spearheaded by the university’s Continuing Learning Experience support group, is the first on campus to be totally financed without state funds.

- The new $20-million, 224-room Marriott Hotel and Conference Center is under construction on Nutwood Avenue next to the Orange (57) Freeway. The hotel is the first in California to be built on a public university campus.

- A proposed $6.7-million sports complex this summer won approval of the CSU Board of Trustees, and construction is scheduled to start in the summer of 1989, with completion by 1991. The complex will be financed by money that the university will get from the new hotel.

- A $9.2-million, five-story addition to the university’s engineering center is scheduled for completion in the fall of 1989.

- A $19.3-million addition to McCarthy Hall, which is the university’s oldest building and which houses most of its science programs, is in the planning stages. Construction is scheduled in 1989-90.

- A renovation of the main library is scheduled to be completed by the end of this month.

- A $15-million addition to the University Center--the student union building--is scheduled to start in 1989.