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GRAND RAPIDS, October 8,
2019: Grand Rapids Community College is offering
Saturday classes this winter to make college more accessible,
especially for learners trying to work around jobs and home
responsibilities.
Starting with the winter
2020 semester, the college will offer classes on Saturdays,
including algebra, English, and sociology. Classes
are offered in Grand Rapids, with some sections also available
at the Lakeshore Campus.
GRCC leaders said
enrollment for the fall 2019 semester dipped slightly, but they
know there are people in Kent and Ottawa counties who can take
advantage of Saturday classes to advance in their jobs or gain
skills for new careers in evolving fields.
GRCC’s fall enrollment for
credit-seeking students is 13,326, down 3.6 percent from fall
2018, according to draft enrollment data. There have been
increases in non-credit career programs, with the college
serving about 25,812 students overall.
“Our mission is to serve the people of West Michigan, and we are
finding more ways to connect with them,” GRCC Provost Brian
Knetl said.
“The expanded offerings on Saturdays are great opportunities
for current students, new students, or people who were working
toward a degree and were interrupted. The traditional schedule
often is not an option for students who are working around jobs
and family obligations. Many of them can benefit from these
expanded offerings.”
The Saturday classes complement current offerings that provide
flexibility to students, including online classes and hybrid
classes that allow students to work online in addition to
classroom sessions. The college also is exploring an expansion
of the current seven-week class schedule in some areas.
The efforts are intended
to help people continue or start an education that can help them
advance in careers and improve – in some cases, transform –
their lives. There were about 280,000 adults in Kent and Ottawa
counties who have not attended college or have not completed a
degree or certificate, according to 2017 statistics from the
federal government’s American Communities Survey.
The changes come as state
leaders call for increasing the number of Michiganders with
college degrees or certificates, and adding programs to help
reduce costs of attending for residents age 25 and older.
“GRCC offers high quality
programs with excellent faculty and we want more people in West
Michigan to access that quality,” Knetl said. “A flexible
schedule helps make us more accessible.”
People interested in
enrolling in Saturday classes or any other GRCC classes can
contact the Admissions and Enrollment Center at (616)
234-3300 or online at grcc.edu/enroll.
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