Winter enrollment down 7 percent

Student enrollment for winter semester at MCCC is down 309 students, or about 7 percent from this same time last year.

MCCC has faced declining enrollment numbers for the last four semesters.

David Nixon, MCCC's president and Mark Hall, MCCC's Director of Admissions and Guidance Services, gave several reasons for the decline, including fewer high school students in Monroe County,  the Affordable Health Care Act, and new financial aid regulations.

Hall said 150 students were dropped due to new regulations.

Hall also mentioned that MCCC has implemented score cut-offs and prerequisites for taking certain courses, which also effected enrollment numbers.

"Any time you raise your standards, it limits your pool of potential students," he said.

Declining enrollment is a problem facing most community colleges in Michigan. According to a report provided by Nixon, twenty of the 28 community colleges in Michigan reported declining enrollment numbers for this semester compared to this same time last year, with an average decline of 6 percent.