JuCo enrollment is the canary in the coalmine

Comm colleges have been struggling mightily since they peaked in the Great Recession. They're hanging on because they're highly subsidized (usually).

Since then, it's been a difficult crash for them. No one needs an AA. And while there are plenty of great jobs if you get a CTE cert or training, most students still prefer to get paid doing that OJT. So it remains niche and underutilized. Many Comm Colleges are joining up with major employers to provide their training, so if nothing else they can explain their access to the property taxes.

Many comm colleges are getting into the undergrad business to stay alive. Here in AZ, they received the ability to offer over the STRONG objection from our public Univ.

I do wonder if there would be a market for some comm colleges to spin off into low-cost, non-reasearch, liberal arts focused undergrad colleges. There's still a ton of kids who want on campus liberal arts degrees but don't want to spend 50k a year doing it. Many comm colleges have underutilized branches or sections of their schools. I know that a liberal arts college doesn't seem like an investment right now, but that's because they're doing it at a price no one wants to pay. Comm colleges are subsidized and may be able to reinvent the 4 year experience: real professors in small classrooms who are able to meet with students instead of focusing on research.

I wonder what other opportunities this higher ed pullback will create. Kids still need a place to grow up.