SPRING CREDIT HOURS INCREASE AT IOWA LAKES

More college credit hours are being taken by students at Iowa Lakes Community College this spring.

Credit hours nudged upward to 31,408 for the spring 2008 semester while the number of students remained nearly stable,

The most significant increase is in the dual enrollment category where high school students study college-level coursework.  Dual enrollments are up 7.5 percent.

“Area high schools in the Iowa Lakes region have been very supportive of dual enrollments,” said Kari Hampe, Secondary Programs Director.  “This is an excellent opportunity for high school students to earn college credit.”

Other strong numbers for Iowa Lakes were from online courses.  Iowa Lakes is a partner in the Iowa Community College Online Consortium (ICCOC) which is experiencing another year of growth.

“Enrollment in online courses at Iowa Lakes and the Iowa Community College Online Consortium continues to increase every semester,” said Theresa Zeigler, Director of Distance Education and Global Learning for Iowa Lakes as well as the Assistant Director of the ICCOC.  “Students find the flexibility of this type of course mixes well with their busy lifestyles and cuts down on the travel to campus.”

Along with the online courses, hybrid classes have increased in popularity.

“The hybrid course gives students face-to-face contact with their instructor, but reduces the amount of time spent in the on-campus classroom by providing an online component,” Zeigler said.

As she looks to the future, she sees more growth.

“We hope to continue to offer new courses each semester in addition to our current listing to meet the diverse needs of all students,” she said.

Iowa Lakes offers more than 100 areas of study at its locations in Algona, Emmetsburg, Estherville, Spencer and Spirit Lake.  In addition, the college provides training and retraining to employees of area business and industry as well as continuing education courses.