Summer Enrollment Up 8% at 3 Colleges

Summer enrollment at the Ventura County Community College District is up 8% from last year--the highest number in the last decade, according to a district official.

Slightly more than 12,500 students are taking classes at the district’s three campuses, according to spokeswoman Barbara Buttner.

The enrollment at individual colleges:

* Oxnard College’s summer enrollment recorded a 17% growth over last summer; the year before, the number had jumped by 19%.

* Moorpark College increased its summer school enrollment this year by 13.5% over last summer; in the summer of 1996, the number grew by 8%.

* Ventura College was the front-runner in summer enrollment last year--it saw a 23% increase. But its enrollment bottomed out this summer, declining by about 1%, according to Buttner.

This summer’s overall numbers are high because of Oxnard College’s promotion of a new education center in Camarillo and because Moorpark College offered twice as many four-week summer sessions this year, Buttner said.

The four-week track, as opposed to the six- or eight-week sessions, appeals to many who want to take a vacation during the summer in addition to taking classes, Buttner said.

Enrollment also gets a boost during the summer when middle and high school students register to take Advanced Placement courses and when “reverse transfer” students sign up to take classes in Ventura County and then carry those credits back to the school they attend in the fall, Buttner said.

Telephone registration for currently enrolled students is available by calling 676-3100. New students can call the individual colleges for applications. Fall classes begin Aug. 18.