MiraCosta eyes ways to reflect community
San Diego Union Tribune – San Diego,CA,USA
The percentage of white students enrolled at the college’s Oceanside and
Encinitas campuses doesn’t represent the same percentage of whites found in
the …

OCEANSIDE – MiraCosta College trustees say they want to lure minorities to their campuses, but in this school’s rather unusual case, one category of “underrepresented students” refers to whites.

The percentage of white students enrolled at the college’s Oceanside and Encinitas campuses doesn’t represent the same percentage of whites found in the community – by more than 8 percentage points.

The ethnicities at the college that match or exceed their populations in the community are African-American, Asian/Pacific Islander and American Indian/Alaska native.

Whites and Latinos lag, although Latinos by less than a percentage point.

How to increase the number of underrepresented students at MiraCosta was a topic of discussion in a study session of the college’s board of trustees yesterday.

By the end of the meeting, the board informally approved three recommendations that call for the school to do a better job of marketing itself to high school students and their families.

At least two reasons – cultural and financial – account for why a disproportionate number of white students don’t attend MiraCosta, said Gilbert Hermosillo, dean of admissions, assessments and student-aid programs.

In an affluent district such as MiraCosta, which serves the North County coastal area, many parents expect their children to attend prestigious four-year colleges and universities, Hermosillo said. And families in the area can afford the high tuitions at those universities.

However, Richard Robertson, vice president of MiraCosta, said the college ought to be pointing out to families that they could save substantially by sending their students to a community college for the first two years and allowing them to transfer to a university.

“We are never going to win the hearts of those who have their heart set on their kid getting into Stanford,” Robertson said. “But we can win their heads” with some hard financial facts.

As an example, San Diego State University lists a tuition of $1,260 for any student taking more than six units. A MiraCosta student would pay $120 for six units.

The University of California San Diego charges $6,850 for a “full time” student taking at least 12 units. MiraCosta’s cost for 12 units would be $240.

Trustees informally approved Hermosillo’s three recommendations:

Research what underrepresented students in middle and high schools believe are barriers to attending college.

Offer a college success class (Counseling 101) to high school students.

Every other month, provide an orientation session about MiraCosta to a different high school.

In addition, personally visit elementary school districts to encourage them to distribute a booklet targeting fourth-graders that encourages them to attend community college. The Encinitas Union School District has declined to distribute the college’s booklet, officials said.