Chancellor's Message on Economic Impacts to College
With the beginning of the new academic year upon us, it is important that the college and the communities our campuses serve share a basic understanding of the impact that California's economic situation has had on our community college district and students.
Riverside Community College District enters the fall semester already having identified $16.5 million in budget reductions. These reductions - a combination of strategic class section cuts and reductions in operating budgets across the district - were very difficult to determine, but necessary.
The facts are straightforward. State funding reductions for community colleges makes it impossible for RCCD to maintain simultaneously a high level of access and a high level of quality.
A little known fact is that, during the past year, RCCD served approximately 4,500 more full-time equivalent students than we received state reimbursement. We can no longer afford to carry those costs.
We face this realty at the same time that demand for classes on the three RCCD campuses is at an all time high. Class sections filled quickly leading up to the semester’s start. Many students did not get all of the classes they wanted and had to be satisfied with being placed on waitlists.
Faculty and staff continue to do everything possible to register students in open classes and to provide critical student services such as admissions, student financial services and counseling. Students not able to enroll in a class by the start of the semester may still be able to take one of the eight-week classes that start later in the semester. I encourage these students to use the convenient Open Course List link on this home page or go directly to WebAdvisor.
No one can predict the future at this point. Much depends upon the speed of the nation's and California's economic recovery. What I can promise is that Riverside Community College District will approach the future as strategically as possible, keeping our focus on the success of students.
