Dupage Policy Journal

The College of DuPage is expecting a significant decrease in enrollment for the fall semester as a direct correlation to the uncertainty of the COVID-19 outbreak.

DuPage was initially expecting a drop of 2.5%, but the actual drop could be closer to 8.5%. About 1,500 students already dropped out this semester when the college announced its transition to online learning after the outbreak of COVID-19. This is a major concern as school officials attempt to create a budget for the 2021 fiscal year.

“If we go into the fall and we're not at a 100% face-to-face (instruction), we will see a similar type of a scenario playing out," Jim Bente, vice president of planning and institutional effectiveness told The Daily Herald.

DuPage is hoping to do a combination of online and in-person classes, but it is still too early to say what the balance will be. They hope to avoid solely online classes in fear of further dropouts. DuPage officials told The Daily Herald that the national trend is expecting 25% of high school students to take a gap year before starting college.

They sort of felt burned out by what's happened," Bente told The Daily Herald. "They (already had) to finish their senior high school year online."

DuPage President Brian Caputo told The Daily Herald that his college is expecting one of three outcomes and that they are prepared for the best and worst scenarios. An 8.5% expected drop out rate is a moderate prediction. However, other community college’s like McHenry County are reporting an increase in enrollment, due to students deferring their entry into large state schools.

Elgin Community College is expecting a 4.3% dropout rate.

A spokeswoman for Harper College told The Daily Herald that they were "planning for a variety of scenarios, but it's challenging given all the variables and unknowns."