Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
Clovis College Is State's Fastest-Growing Community College As Enrollments Top 13,000
NANCY WEBSITE HEADSHOT 1
By Nancy Price, Multimedia Journalist
Published 6 years ago on
September 24, 2019

Share

Enrollment at Clovis Community College, the state’s fastest-growing community college, continues to grow as new pathways and majors are added, President Lori Bennett said Tuesday morning at the second annual President’s Breakfast.
This year’s enrollment is expected to top 13,000 students, nearly doubling the number of students served in just seven years, Bennett said at the event at the Clovis Veterans Memorial District.

 
“Fewer units means our students are not stacking up lots of unnecessary units and courses on their way to degree completion. Our motto is, we get ’em in, and we move ’em on.”
— Clovis Community College President Lori Bennett
A new academic building that got funding in this year’s state budget will help provide much-needed space for a college that’s starting to burst at the seams, she said.
Clovis College will be able to expand its STEM — science, technology, engineering and math — pathways and student services in the new building, Bennett said.
“Over the last four years we’ve more than doubled the number of degrees and certificates available to our students, starting new programs like environmental science and social justice,” she said.

A Home For Career Tech

The $96.1 million Applied Technology Center will house career technical education programs and is being built in two phases. The first building will be 66,000 square feet and cost $51.4 million, of which $26.1 million is from Proposition 51 funding, officials said. Construction will begin in 2022, and the building is scheduled to open in late 2023 to early 2024.
“Initially the funds were not included in the state budget released in January 2019,” college spokeswoman Stephanie Babb told GV Wire later Tuesday. “However, with the advocacy of local elected officials at the local, county and state levels and community leaders, the funds were included in the May revise and signed by the governor.”
Proposition 51, approved in 2016, allows the state to sell bonds totaling $9 billion for new buildings and improvements of facilities at K-12 schools and community colleges.

Measure C, Prop 51 Help Fund Project

State Center Community College District is applying for state matching funds for the Applied Technology Center’s second phase.
Measure C, the bond measure approved by State Center Community College District voters for local projects in June 2016, will provide $70 million for the project’s two phases.
Some Clovis College students are going straight into the local workforce, while many others are moving on to complete their four-year degree, Bennett said.
The college is No. 1 in the Central Valley and the state in the rate of students going to UC and CSU campuses per 1,000 students, No. 1 in the Central Valley for students completing their transfer-level math and English in their first year, and No. 1 in the state for associate degrees earned with the smallest amount of accumulated units.
“Fewer units means our students are not stacking up lots of unnecessary units and courses on their way to degree completion,” she said. “Our motto is, we get ’em in, and we move ’em on.”

Going to Their Neighborhood College

Bennett provided some statistics about the college’s student body: 65% are Clovis Unified graduates, 51% are from Fresno and 32% are from Clovis, and 90% plan to transfer to a four-year university after earning their associate degree, compared to 66% for the state’s community colleges on average.
Clovis College also has embarked on a number of community partnerships, Bennett said: the Fresno County DRIVE Initiative, the Math Alignment Project with Clovis East High School, education pathways with university partners “to increase the pipeline of future teachers,” and a pre-pharmacy pathway agreement with California Health Sciences University.
“The program began a few years ago with one or two students participating, but this year I understand there are about 16 Clovis Community College graduates attending California Health Sciences University’s Pharmacy Program,” Bennett said.

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

Arizona Governor Vetoes Bill to Ban Teaching Antisemitism in Arizona’s Public Schools

DON'T MISS

US Rep. LaMonica McIver Indicted on Federal Charges From Skirmish at New Jersey Immigration Center

DON'T MISS

US Military Bases to Restore Names Changed After Racial Justice Protests, Trump Says

DON'T MISS

Clovis Councilmember Basgall Says He Won’t Run for Re-Election

DON'T MISS

An Unknowing Fresno County Gave Community Medical $2.7M While Hospital Engaged in Kickback Scheme

DON'T MISS

Wall Street Ends Higher as Investors Track Progress of US-China Trade Talks

DON'T MISS

Israel Strikes Hodeidah Port, Threatens Naval, Air Blockade

DON'T MISS

Trump Warns Protests at Army Parade Will Be Met With Force

DON'T MISS

Britain and Allies Sanction Israeli Far-Right Ministers for ‘Inciting Violence’

DON'T MISS

Trump Aide Criticizes Mexican President on Los Angeles Protests

UP NEXT

Do Americans Support Trump’s Use of Marines in LA? The Numbers Might Shock You

UP NEXT

Marines Will Deploy to LA for 60 Days, Costing Taxpayers $134 Million

UP NEXT

Trump Administration Deploys Marines to Los Angeles, Vows to Intensify Migrant Raids

UP NEXT

How Much Will Fresno Unified Trustee’s Steak Dinner Cost After FPPC Fine?

UP NEXT

First the National Guard, Will the Marines Be Next at LA Riots?

UP NEXT

Hundreds Peacefully Protest ICE Raids in Downtown Fresno

UP NEXT

Sights & Sounds: The 2025 Fresno Rainbow Pride Parade and Festival

UP NEXT

Doctors Were Preparing to Remove Their Organs. Then They Woke Up.

UP NEXT

FDA’s AI Assistant ‘Elsa’ Fails Its First Day on the Job

UP NEXT

8 Ways Musk and Trump Could Inflict Pain on Each Other

Nancy Price,
Multimedia Journalist
Nancy Price is a multimedia journalist for GV Wire. A longtime reporter and editor who has worked for newspapers in California, Florida, Alaska, Illinois and Kansas, Nancy joined GV Wire in July 2019. She previously worked as an assistant metro editor for 13 years at The Fresno Bee. Nancy earned her bachelor's and master's degrees in journalism at Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism. Her hobbies include singing with the Fresno Master Chorale and volunteering with Fresno Filmworks. You can reach Nancy at 559-492-4087 or Send an Email

Clovis Councilmember Basgall Says He Won’t Run for Re-Election

6 hours ago

An Unknowing Fresno County Gave Community Medical $2.7M While Hospital Engaged in Kickback Scheme

7 hours ago

Wall Street Ends Higher as Investors Track Progress of US-China Trade Talks

9 hours ago

Israel Strikes Hodeidah Port, Threatens Naval, Air Blockade

9 hours ago

Trump Warns Protests at Army Parade Will Be Met With Force

10 hours ago

Britain and Allies Sanction Israeli Far-Right Ministers for ‘Inciting Violence’

10 hours ago

Trump Aide Criticizes Mexican President on Los Angeles Protests

10 hours ago

Do Americans Support Trump’s Use of Marines in LA? The Numbers Might Shock You

10 hours ago

Israeli Gunfire Kills 17 People Near Gaza Aid Site, Health Officials Say

11 hours ago

Parliament Member Corbyn Calls for Inquiry Into UK Role in Gaza War

11 hours ago

Arizona Governor Vetoes Bill to Ban Teaching Antisemitism in Arizona’s Public Schools

PHOENIX — Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs has vetoed a proposal that would ban teaching antisemitism at the state’s public K-12 schools, universiti...

4 hours ago

Arizona Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs, center, applauds for those affected by the Los Angeles area wildfires as she gives the State of the State address in the House of Representatives at the state Capitol with Speaker of the House Rep. Steve Montenegro, R-Litchfield Park, left, and Senate President Warren Petersen, R-Gilbert, flanking the governor on Jan. 13, 2025, in Phoenix. (AP File)
4 hours ago

Arizona Governor Vetoes Bill to Ban Teaching Antisemitism in Arizona’s Public Schools

Rep. LaMonica McIver, D-N.J., demands the release of Newark Mayor Ras Baraka after his arrest while protesting outside an ICE detention prison, May 9, 2025, in Newark, N.J, (AP Photo/Angelina Katsanis, File)
4 hours ago

US Rep. LaMonica McIver Indicted on Federal Charges From Skirmish at New Jersey Immigration Center

President Donald Trump prepares to deliver remarks during a visit to Fort Bragg to mark the U.S. Army anniversary, in North Carolina, U.S., June 10, 2025. REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein
6 hours ago

US Military Bases to Restore Names Changed After Racial Justice Protests, Trump Says

6 hours ago

Clovis Councilmember Basgall Says He Won’t Run for Re-Election

7 hours ago

An Unknowing Fresno County Gave Community Medical $2.7M While Hospital Engaged in Kickback Scheme

Traders work on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, U.S., June 5, 2025. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/ File Photo
9 hours ago

Wall Street Ends Higher as Investors Track Progress of US-China Trade Talks

A bridge crane damaged by Israeli air strikes is pictured in the Red Sea port of Hodeidah, Yemen July 31, 2024. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah//File Photo
9 hours ago

Israel Strikes Hodeidah Port, Threatens Naval, Air Blockade

U.S. President Donald Trump boards Air Force One as he departs for North Carolina at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, U.S., June 10, 2025. REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein
10 hours ago

Trump Warns Protests at Army Parade Will Be Met With Force

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend