Watsonville Center Master Plan Planning Assumptions

Demographics | Economy | Educational Needs | Infrastructure

Demographics

 

1.	The Watsonville Center enrollment has grown by approximately 5% 
	each year. Projections have shown that the Watsonville Center 
	enrollment will be at 2,360 in 2003, with a growth of another 
	115 students in 2004, and up to a total enrollment of 3,295 in 
	2010. (Fact Book 2002, p.6)  
2.	The highest rate of enrollment increase projected through 2012 
	will be for the Asian/Filipino/Pacific Islander population, 
	which will nearly triple. (Fact Book 2002, p.6)
3.	The Hispanic student population will remain the majority.  (Fact 
	Book 2002, p.6)
4.	There will be more young people [potential student base] in the 
	Watsonville area, compared to the rest of the county. ("Profile 
	of General Demographic Characteristics: 2000, Geographic area: 
	Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA, Census 2000," U.S. Census Bureau; 
	Family and Children Stats as of 2000, ERSys.com)
5.	Approximately 50% of students at the Watsonville Center are the 
	first in their family to attend college.  (Watsonville Center 
	Student Survey, Fall 2002)
6.	Approximately 40% of Watsonville Center students work full time 
	and 95% of them are part time students. (Watsonville Center 
	Student Survey, Fall 2002)
7.	Of all media venues, television appears to be the most effective 
	medium, and Channel 67 reaches more Watsonville Spanish-speaking 
	residents than any other television station. (Cabrillo College 
	Marketing and Communications Office; Meeting notes, June 26, 2002
	Meeting with City of Watsonville Representatives re: Watsonville
	Center Master Plan, Watsonville City Hall)
8.	Watsonville residents, particularly Latinos, are not as generally
	aware of the college presence in Watsonville as was previously 
	thought. (Meeting notes, Focus Group Meeting with Watsonville 
	Center Students re: Watsonville Center Master Plan, July 31, 
	2002)
Economy
1.	There is a need for economic development in the Watsonville area,
	and a related need for improved job skills due to a high unemployment
	rate and low job skills. There is also need for an increased 
	number of people trained in health occupations. (Meeting notes, 
	June 26, 2002 Meeting with City of Watsonville Representatives 
	re: Watsonville Center Master Plan, Watsonville City Hall)
2.	There is a continuing need for training in occupational fields.  
	Specifically, the jobs projected from 1999 to 2006 to experience 
	largest rate of increases are computer engineer (57.8%), computer 
	support tech (44.2%), police patrol officers (38.7%), system 
	analysis/data processing (37.9%), and special ed teachers (34.1%).
	Jobs projected from 1999-2006 to be experiencing largest growth 
	in numbers are retail sales professionals (n=340), cashiers (n=310), 
	general office clerks (n=290), secondary school teachers (n=280), 
	general managers (n=270), and elementary school teachers (n=260). 
	(Community Assessment Project Comprehensive Report 2002, p.27)
3.	Employers in the City of Watsonville demand increased basic skills 
	for employees.  (Meeting notes, June 26, 2002 Meeting with City 
	of Watsonville Representatives re: Watsonville Center Master Plan,
	Watsonville City Hall)
4.	The fastest job growth is seen in the construction industry (6.3% 
	2000-2001). The largest growth of new jobs is seen in trade (800 
	new jobs 2000-2001), services (800 new jobs, 2000-2001) and 
	government (700 new jobs, 2000-2001) sectors. (Community Assessment 
	Project Comprehensive Report, 2002, p. 26)
5.	Watsonville has both the highest growth rate of new business and 
	the highest unemployment rate in Santa Cruz County, 5.6% and 12.8% 
	respectively. The second-highest rates were 1.8% new business 
	growth in Capitola and 5.3% unemployment in Santa Cruz. (Community 
	Assessment Project Comprehensive Report, 2002, pp. 24, 28) 
6.	For the foreseeable future, the entire college will be operating 
	in a highly restrained fiscal environment. ("Governor's Proposed 
	Cuts," Cabrillo College Office of the President Email Message re: 
	the California Governor's Proposed Education Budget Cuts, December 
	9, 2002; "Governor's Budget Package Includes Major Across-the-Board 
	Local Agency Cuts, " School Services of California, Inc., December 
	9, 2002) 
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Educational Needs
1.	Compared to other Santa Cruz high schools, Watsonville students 
	are not prepared for college-level Math and English courses.  A 
	large percentage of students assessed at Watsonville High School 
	assess into basic level Math and English. Watsonville High School 
	students consistently score lowest on SAT scores within Santa 
	Cruz County public high schools. (Cabrillo College Assessment of 
	High School Students, Fact Book 2001 and Fact Book 2002, p.30; 
	Fact Book 1999-00, p.39, Fact Book 1998-99, p.40)
2.	The demand for transferable General Education classes will continue. 
	(Watsonville Center Student Survey, Fall 2002; Meeting notes, July 
	31, 2002 Focus Group Meeting with Watsonville Center Students re: 
	Watsonville Center Master Plan)
3.	A majority of Watsonville Center students prefer not to take intensive 
	classes (compressed schedule). (Watsonville Center Student Survey,
	Fall 2002) 
4.	There is a need to identify areas of instructional improvement. 
	This might include addressing the full-time/part-time instructor
	ratio that is currently at 28% full-time.  (Watsonville Center 
	Student Survey, Fall 2002)
5.	There is a desire on the part of the City of Watsonville to continue 
	and expand cooperative arrangements with the college. [parking; 
	Library 101; Water Quality Certification]  (Meeting notes, June 2
	6, 2002 Meeting with City of Watsonville Representatives re: 
	Watsonville Center Master Plan, Watsonville City Hall) [this also 
	appears under Tech/Fac/Infrastructure]
6.	The California K-12 Education Technology Master Plan recommends 
	an increase of "the capacity of California's postsecondary education 
	systems to prepare larger numbers of qualified educators for our 
	public schools and preschools, particularly in regions where … 
	projected shortages of teachers are greatest, and from among non-
	White racial and ethnic groups." ("The California K-12 Education 
	Technology Master Plan," November 2002, Recommendation 4.4, p. 15)
7.	Watsonville High and Aptos High, which are the large "feeder" high
	schools to the Watsonville Center, have API (Academic Performance 
	Index) scores of 488 and 688 respectively. [The scale is 200-1,000 
	based on standardized test scores.] The Hispanic API of these schools 
	is 464 and 516 respectively. (PVUSD 2002 Growth API ratings) On
	a statewide ranking system of 1-10, Watsonville High is a 1 and 
	Aptos High is a 7. (Community Assessment Project Comprehensive 
	Report, 2002, p. 67)
8.	The four-year high school dropout rate for Latinos in Santa Cruz 
	County is 13.5%, compared to 2.6% for Caucasian. The PVUSD four-
	year dropout rate is 12.6%. (Community Assessment Project Comprehensive 
	Report, 2002, p. 79-80)
9.	Retention programs such as tutoring increase the success and 
	retention rate of first-generation and non-traditional students. 
	(Cabrillo College Tutorial Survey, 1996; Cabrillo College 
	Student Evaluations of Tutorial Program and Tutoring Services, 
	administered each semester, Tutorial Program Office; Watsonville 
	Center Director's Office, 2002; Students who used ILC had a 72% 
	success rate vs. a 66% success rate for those who did not, study 
	by Watsonville Center Director's Office and PRO)  
10.	In Watsonville, 36% of the population over 25 years of age have 
	less than a 9th grade education, and less than 9% have a BA or 
	higher vs. the County. (Community Assessment Project Comprehensive 
	Report, 2002, p. 101) 
11.	Of the eight ethnic categories studied, Latino students have the 
	second lowest rate of completing college preparation courses (24.3%). 
	The highest rate is for Caucasian students (49.7%). (Community 
	Assessment Project Comprehensive Report, 2002, p. 94)
12.	The state continues to encourage collaborative efforts between 
	2- and 4-year institutions to improve transfer rates. ("Master 
	Plan for Education in California," May 2002 Draft, California 
	State Senate; recommendations 12.5 and 12.6). 


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Infrastructure
1.	Demand for parking will continue. Sixty-six percent of the 
	students surveyed rated parking as the highest priority for 
	improvement. (Watsonville Center Student Survey, Fall 2002; 
	Campus Climate Student Survey, 2001) 
2.	Childcare remains a significant need for approximately 23% 
	of the students at the Watsonville Center. (Watsonville Center 
	Student Survey, Fall 2002; Community Assessment Project Comprehensive 
	Report, 2002, p.93)
3.	There will be a continuing need for traditional phone and 
	in-person registration [While students at the Watsonville Center 
	are transitioning to increased internet usage, feedback from the 
	student focus group indicated the need to provide person-to-person 
	communication with the college]. (Watsonville Center Student 
	Survey, Fall 2002; Meeting notes, July 31, 2002 Focus Group 
	Meeting with Watsonville Center Students re: Watsonville Center 
	Master Plan)
4.	Approximately 50% of Watsonville Center students drive to the 
	Watsonville Center. (Watsonville Center Student Survey, Fall 2002; 
	Transportation Survey; Cabrillo College Transportation Study, 
	2001)
5.	The government will demand better analysis of teaching methodologies 
	and collection of data among K-12 schools. ("Bringing Evidence-
	Driven Progress to Education: A Recommended Strategy for the U.S. 
	Department of Education," U.S. Department of Education, November 
	2002)
6.	The Watsonville Center continues to have room for growth in 
	daytime course offerings. Almost 30% of the classrooms at the 
	Watsonville Center are unused during the day. (Watsonville Center 
	Director's Office, 2002)
7.	There is a need to increase student awareness of services available 
	through the Student Resource Center. (Meeting notes, Focus Group 
	Meeting with Watsonville Center Students re: Watsonville Center 
	Master Plan, July 31, 2002; Watsonville Center Student Survey, 
	Fall 2002)

Note: In this document, as in other official college documents, the term 
Hispanic is used interchangeably with Latino. Either term refers to people 
of non-White Hispanic/Latino origins. Hispanics/Latinos are ethnicities, 
not races. In this area, they are primarily composed of people of Mexican/
Central American origin - indigenous and indigenous-based mestizo population.  


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