But however cautious and deliberative the committee is, it will be difficult to avoid the evidence that has been piling up like a jackknifed train for the last two years. With all of the alternatives available — the expansion of liberal arts programs at technical colleges and more access to four-year colleges — it’s fair to ask why we need the two-year schools at all.
Students and their parents are answering that question. The number of two-year campuses has shrunk by six — there are now seven of them — in half a year, and two more could be closed if enrollments don’t immediately improve.
Overall enrollment in the schools is down by more than 64%, from 9,959 in 2010 to 3,556 in 2023, according to a UW-Milwaukee report.Enrollment dropped by more than half since 2018 alone, when the two-year schools came under the authority of four-year schools, according to Rothman’s branch campus briefing in October 2023.