CSU global campus attracts many students

CASTLE ROCK - Linda and Jerry Shamlin are spending their summer doing homework while their two children are not. The couple is getting Master's degrees at CSU's Global Campus. It's the fastest growing higher education campus in Colorado which doesn't have any ivy on its walls or Greek row as its classes are all offered online.

For the couple, who both work for the Douglas County School District, the struggling economy and a realization they may be in the job market again in the future compelled them to take three classes every eight weeks since last fall. They will receive their graduate degrees at the end of the month.

"We didn't know in 12 months if we would have jobs. We didn't know in six months if we would have jobs," said Jerry. "Any competitive advantage you can have in a job hunt is going to be a benefit and a Masters Degree would do that."

Since CSU began offering classes last September, its enrollment has spiked. Already, more than a thousand students have completed classes. The global campus is actually run out of a second-floor office in Greenwood Village and its faculty are hearing similar stories to the Shamlins from their adult learners.

They are quick to point out the most recent U.S. Census figures which show the average worker with a high school diploma earns $27,915 per year, the average worker with a bachelor's degree makes $51,206 and with an advanced degree, that figure rises to $74,602.

"Adults have determined they have to have new skills in order to compete and apply for jobs," said Dr. Becky Takeda-Tinker, a CSU-Global Campus instructor. "They either know their time is limited in their current position or feel that their time is limited."

The legislation that created the on-line campus passed through the Colorado General Assembly on a unanimous vote earlier this year and was signed into law by Gov. Bill Ritter (D-Colorado).

For the Shamlins, who have seen layoffs earlier this year at their workplace, they always wanted to get advanced degrees. The intensity of the recession expedited their decision to prepare now for an uncertain future.

"If there was somebody else applying for another job that I was up against, maybe I'd get the position because I had a further education," said Linda Shamlin. "You just don't know what the future holds."

Related Links: www.csuglobal.org