Total headcount on Anoka-Ramsey Community College’s (ARCC’s) Coon Rapids and Cambridge campuses increased from 6,910 in Fall 2003 (30th-day enrollment report), to 7,200 in Fall 2004 (30th-day enrollment report), a 4.2 percent rise. Early numbers for Spring 2005 suggest ARCC’s enrollment will likely hold steady compared to Spring 2004. Meanwhile, the total Fall 2004 headcount for all Minnesota State Colleges and Universities dropped by 893 students this fall, a decrease of 0.5 percent.

Low Cost
One factor for the rising headcounts this year: ARCC maintains the lowest cost of any public college or university in Minnesota, all while offering a wide range of high-quality, liberal-arts-transfer and career-focused academic programs.

ARCC’s current annual tuition and fees is $3,456 for Minnesota residents taking 30 semester credits. In comparison, within the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities (MnSCU) system, the average 2004-05 annual tuition and fees for is $4,020.

“It’s a balancing act to keep costs low and still provide high quality programs, services and facilities,” says ARCC Vice President of Administration Michael Seymour.

Keeping tuition low is difficult in an era when all colleges and universities have needed to repeatedly raise tuition to balance their budgets. Among the forces bearing down on MnSCU schools, state spending per student has declined by almost 18 percent over the past five years. To maintain quality programs and facilities, the average MnSCU school has raised tuition 58.5 percent the past five years. ARCC raised its tuition too, but at a lesser rate. From fiscal year 2001 to fiscal year 2005, ARCC’s annual tuition rose 40.6 percent.

Budget Efficiencies
“Annual budgeting takes into account inflationary increases, payroll adjustments, as well as quality checks - being able to maintain lower class sizes, student service offerings and building and grounds upkeep,” Seymour says. “We also have to take into account workload levels that preserve effective customer service and employee morale.”

Fortunately, ARCC has seen a steady enrollment growth over the last few years, which has helped offset the lower funding provided by the state. From Fall 2002 to Fall 2004, total headcount of ARCC’s two campuses rose 10.3 percent (based on 30th-day enrollment totals).

“We have been able to absorb our yearly increases in enrollment with few additions to staff,” says Seymour. “Although future growth might require added staff, we’ll first look to find even more efficiencies between our campuses and ties with other metro alliance colleges. On the flip side, since we now rely on tuition for half our funding, an enrollment drop could require mid-year adjustments to our staffing levels.”

Legislative Watch
More immediately, the college is making its voice heard in the state legislature prior to the start of the next legislative session.

“Getting MnSCU’s operating budget approved by the legislature is a top priority,” says ARCC President, Dr. Patrick M. Johns.

The MnSCU Board of Trustees has put forward a budget request with a $66.5 million increase for the 2006-2007 biennium, the smallest requested increase in the system’s history. It would allow tuition increases to be capped at 4 percent per year over the next two years, which would be the smallest tuition increase since 1999.

“Students can’t continue to be asked to bear more of the burden of supporting the operation of our public colleges and universities,” says Johns. “We want to keep tuition as low as possible, so that as many students as possible can be served by the college and be prepared for good careers.”

High-Quality Education
ARCC’s current situation allows it to offer a low-cost, high-quality education to its students. Among its offerings:

• Two-year degrees, including Associate in Arts, Associate in Science, Associate in Applied Science, and our newest degree option, Associate of Fine Arts in Music.
• Easy transfer to many four-year college degree programs in Minnesota and surrounding states.
• Great career programs in nursing, business, computer science, computer networking and telecommunications, biomedical technology, geographic information systems, physical therapist assistant, pre-engineering and more.
• One-year certificate programs in several specialties to provide opportunities for job advancement and new career options.
• A wide variety of on- and off-site continuing education and customized training programs for working professionals.