VVC cancels winter session to balance budget

VICTORVILLE • Victor Valley College has canceled its winter courses session, and the cost of credits could jump by 30 percent this fall, officials said.

Generally some 4,500 students attend winter session, which includes more than 230 intensive six-week classes. Now, those students will have to cram their credits into the regular fall, spring and summer sessions.

If it’s affordable, college officials would like to open additional class sections during fall and spring semesters or increase class sizes slightly to accommodate those students, said VVC spokesman Bill Greulich.

Canceling winter session saves about $550,000 to help balance a budget amid state raids, Greulich said. VVC officials are now bracing for nearly $9 million in cuts for next year.

VVC officials also worry about enrollment — which increased by about 18 percent this past spring— but have yet to turn away students, Greulich said. That could change if the state decides to make even deeper raids to community colleges, he added.

Officials are still debating whether to increase the cost per credit from $20 to $26, which would actually bring credit prices closer to what they were a few years ago, Greulich said.

Depending on state budget decisions, VVC could issue faculty layoffs or cancel more class sections — measures officials hope they don’t have to take.

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Natasha Lindstrom may be reached at 951-6232 or at nlindstrom@VVDailyPress.com.