Calhoun Enrollment on the Upswing for its Fall 2024 Semester

Today, Calhoun Community College kicked off its fall 2024 semester, and is excited to announce that enrollment continues to trend upward, with registration still ongoing.

According to Wes Torain, Calhoun's Public Relations and Digital Media Director, enrollment numbers currently stand at 8,610 students. However, this figure does not yet include approximately 800 Dual Enrollment students who are still being processed in our system. We’re pleased to report that enrollment numbers are trending upward, and we anticipate a final count of almost 9,500 students.

 “Several factors are driving the increase in our enrollment. We're committed to closely aligning our programs with the needs of business and industry, ensuring that our curriculum is relevant, up-to-date, and meets industry standards. As a result, many of our graduates transition directly from the commencement stage to employment,” commented Dr. Jimmy Hodges, Calhoun President. “More and more students and their parents recognize the quality and affordability at Calhoun and we're seeing an increase in the number of students who begin their educational journey here and then transfer to a four-year university,” Hodges adds.

“We opened our first residence hall in downtown Decatur at the Alabama Center for the Arts, and we believe that new addition will boost enrollment in the visual and performing arts programs. We are hoping to break ground next month on a new $15-million dance/music studio next to The Brick restaurant in Downtown Decatur, which we hope will also attract individuals who are interested in dance and music to our facility,” Hodges said. “Our athletics department continues to expand as we now have over 170 student-athletes across 11 sports, which doesn’t include our exciting news regarding the addition of cheerleading this fall. As a result of all of these efforts, we are very pleased with the direction we're headed; it's been a long and slow post COVID recovery, but we believe we're on track to reach our goal of 10,000 students in the near future,” Hodges says excitedly.

Although today marks the start of the fall semester, the college is still enrolling students for its first and second mini-session courses. These 8-week accelerated courses are available in almost all subjects and are conveniently offered online, in-person, and in hybrid formats for flexible options. Mini-sessions are perfect for students who need a bit more time to start but still want to complete their courses faster than a traditional 4-month semester. The first mini-session began today, and the second mini-session will begin on Monday, October 14.
 
“Once fall registration closes for the second mini-session, we will have a clearer picture of our final enrollment numbers for fall,” says Torain.

To learn more about Calhoun’s many degree and certificate options, or to explore how you can take a few classes for retraining or upgrading your skills, visit www.calhoun.edu/degreeoptions. To get registered and enroll for classes this fall, visit www.calhoun.edu/register.

All media inquiries must contact Calhoun’s Public Relations team at 256-306-2560 or 256-306-2965