The sour economy has been a boon for college enrollment in Hawai'i.

The 10-campus University of Hawai'i system signed up 58,157 students for the fall semester, the highest enrollment in the school's history. The seven UH community college campuses led the way with a 13.5 percent increase over last year.

When the economy turns south and unemployment climbs, people are more apt to turn to community colleges for vocational training.

"The community college, by design, is relatively low-cost, pretty flexible with class offerings," said John Morton, UH vice president for community colleges. "It creates a gateway for people who want to get a different set of skills, want to get more education."

Also yesterday, the state Department of Education reported the public school system saw a 0.4 percent bump in enrollment this year, the first noteworthy increase in enrollment since 1998.

Hawai'i has more than 178,000 students now enrolled at the 257 DOE schools and 31 charter schools.

Before this year, enrollment had declined in all but one year since 1998, when it stood at nearly 190,000.

The 58,157 enrolled at UH campuses surpassed the record 53,509 set last fall by 8.7 percent.

"Our record high enrollment is both good news and bad news," said Linda Johnsrud, vice president of academic planning and policy, in a statement. "It's a positive sign that people are recognizing the value of higher education, but growth is coming at a time when we are least able to handle it financially."

Campuses are struggling to cut $76 million from their budgets this year, and they have predicted more cuts to come as state tax revenues continue to decline.

UH-Manoa saw a minimal bump in enrollment at less than 2 percent, although it was the biggest increase in the past six years.

A total of 20,360 are enrolled at UH-Manoa, 391 students more than last year.

"We're excited that more of Hawai'i's young people are realizing what a great investment a degree from UH-Manoa offers for their future lives and careers," said Manoa Chancellor Virginia Hinshaw in a statement.

Traditionally, four-year campuses do not see the same kind of spike in enrollment that community colleges campuses do during an economic downturn.

The bulk of the increases in UH enrollment occurred at the community college campuses, with 32,446 enrolled, a spike of 3,855 students.

INCREASE SMALL

The 0.4 percent increase in public school enrollment was so small that it put to rest predictions that more private school students would transfer to public schools this year because of the downturn in the economy.

DOE officials say movement from private to public schools had little to do with the increase in enrollment this year, which amounted to only about 780 students. With all 257 DOE schools and 31 charter schools, enrollment is 178,649, compared with 177,871 last year.

"It wasn't a large number coming from private to public," said Tom Saka, information specialist with DOE's Office of Information Technology Services.

Usually, the DOE sees about 1,840 students a year transfer in from private schools. This year, the number reached about 2,000.

"For all we know, it might just be a spike and not necessarily have anything to do with the economy," Saka said.

Some private school officials were baffled by the numbers, especially considering that certain schools have been reporting a clear decline in enrollment.

"Where did they all go, then? We have seen a decline. We're sure of it," said Carmen Himenes, superintendent of Hawaii Catholic schools.

While Catholic school officials have yet to fully compile enrollment data, Himenes said that many Neighbor Island and some Honolulu-area schools are already reporting declines in enrollment.

Himenes speculated that the declines in private schools could be attributed to shifts within the private school system — parents moving from one school to another, based on scholarship offers.

"There was a lot of campaigning among private schools this year to be sure they got the enrollment they needed to balance their budgets," Himenes said. "A lot of the schools with deeper or bigger endowments were able to offer more to tuition scholarships," she said.

The Hawaii Association of Independent Schools is still collecting enrollment data from its schools, said spokeswoman Cynthia Jordan.

CHARTERS GAIN

Hawaii Public Charter Schools saw a larger bump in enrollment than regular public schools, according to DOE figures.

Charter school enrollment was recorded at 7,819, or 446 more students than last year.

Bob Roberts, chief financial officer for the Charter School Administrative Office, said that number is preliminary and is likely to increase by the mandatory Oct. 15 reporting date for charter schools.

The charter school administration predicts that enrollment will reach 8,424 this year, compared to 7,603 last year, Roberts said.

"The Oct. 15 number is more important. That's the number we use when we go to the Legislature for funding," he said.