Students filled the parking lots, Campus Center, gymnasium and Raider Walk this week for the start of the Fall semester. As some students rushed to their classes, others stopped to socialize with classmates past and present. Lisa Putnam, the Dean of Visual Arts & Applied Sciences, said enrollment this Fall is currently down about 0.21% from the Fall of 2012, when the Ventura County Community College District listed the official headcount as 14,070 students. Putnam also stated that students are taking 1.29% less units on average this Fall. 

Putnam offered several theories about why these number may have declined.

“We haven’t had concrete conversations to really look at it,” said Putnam “A few ideas have been floating around. People are going back to work, the idea that we were cutting classes last year and people haven’t gotten word that we’re starting to stable out and thirdly, the enrollment priorities. Students are very savvy, they’re being cautious with what they’re taking.” 

The following members of the Student Voice Staff contributed to this story: Jennifer Bendana, Glenda Brown, Casey Desain, Ariana Duenas Lopez, Connor Duncan, Joseph Franklin, Leila Geary, Sarah Goulding, Tyler Greer, Nicolas Hanson, Anthony Heller, Danielle Johnston, Haley Kramer, Luther Mcpherson, Andrew Nino, Ethan Persico, Curtis Poindexter, Caleb Sperling, Casey Stamp, Stephanie Stanziano, Mathew Stern, Melissa Tabone, Mario Vasquez, Brett Vollert and Dominic Zazzarino.