Community colleges are a melting pot of ages.

Students that attend these establishments are all different ages. Each student has their share of knowledge and experiences that they can combine to achieve a degree or transfer.

Community colleges are becoming more and more diverse in ages each year.

In the 2017-18 semester, El Camino College found that their population of students that are 19-years-old or less increased since 2012 according to the Chancellor’s Office Data Mart.

In 2012 there were 9,148 students that made up 28.86 percent of the student count. But, 2017 the count was 10,732 which made up 31.87 percent of the student count according to the Data Mart.

Student ages 20-24 make up the biggest population of students on El Camino campus.

El Camino has seen an increase since while staying steady since 2012 with a small dip in 2016 according Data Mart.

In 2012 there were 12,221 students that made up 38.55 percent of the student count according to the Chancellor’s Office Data Mart. In 2017 the student count is up to 12,500 which makes up to 37.12 percent of the student population according to the Data Mart.

Students of all ages are coming together and trying to get business done and transfer as soon as possible and by looking at these community colleges across the Los Angeles area it is shown.

One of the causes in the jump of students 19 and under is due to the dual enrollment program at El Camino College.

“ Dual enrollment is an umbrella term any student that is typically 9th, 10th, 11th and 12th grade enrolled in a community college or a university where there getting high school credit and college credit,” Michelle Arthur the Director of dual enrollment said.

Dual enrollment can be achieved in three ways. One way would be if an El Camino professor goes to the high school and teaches a course, if the student is taking the class online, and if the high school student goes to El Camino for classes.

“As of this fall we had 100 core sections offered at 21 high schools,” Arthur said.

Overall there are about 1900 students taking full advantage of this program and still growing.

The South Bay Promise program is another cause of the spikes in ages 19 or less at El Camino.

So, the South Bay Promise is a program where students promise to apply early, be full time, complete FAFSA, meet with a counselor, declare a major, and the first year of college is free.

Regardless of how much money the student makes the first year will still be free as long as they live in the service area.

Now taking a look Santa Monica College that has seen some spikes in enrollment of students that are 19-years-old or less in 2012 there were 12,650 students which were 28.10 percent of the student count according to the Data Mart. They saw their best number in 2016 when there were 12,889 students that made up 28.60 of the school population. In 2017 Santa Monica saw a 1 percent decrease with 27.60 of the students being 19 or less according to the Data Mart. Santa Monica’s moneymakers are students that are 20 to 24 years of age.

In 2012 they recorded 16,193 students are 20 to 24 years of age making up 35.97 percent of the student count according to the Data Mart.

But, in 2017 Santa Monica reported 15,454 students now making up 34.93 percent of the student count according to the Data Mart. They ‘ve seen a bit of a decrease but that could change in the future.

“We are looking into this. Once we know, we can better address this. It is on our horizon, rest assured,” Barney Gomez Vice Chancellor for Digital Innovations and Infrastructure said when he was asked about the growing number of students from ages 19 to 24.

Cerritos College has seen influxes in there student count of ages 19 and younger.

In 2012 7,409 students were counted making up for 24.70 of the student population according to the Data Mart.

Compared to 2017 when there were 7,111, 19 and younger students counted making for 22.66 percent of the student count according to the Data Mart.

Students between the ages of 20 to 24 have the biggest population of students on the Cerritos campus, in 2012 there were 11,042 students of that age group making up for 36.82 of the population according to the Data Mart.

Since 2017 there’s been a 3.62 percent decrease. 10,418 students ages 20 to 24 were counted for the 2017-2018 semesters according to the Data Mart.

Last but not least the spotlight is on Long Beach City College. In 2012 there were 8,255 students ranging from ages of 19 or less which made up 26.49 percent according to the Data Mart.

Often for students between the ages 20-24 it is their last chance. They didn’t get into a university that they wanted so this is the next step for them counselor Sabra Sabio said, “The next group they are fresh out of high school and they have no idea what they want to do so they come to see counselors,” Sabio said.

Long Beach has seen healthy increases over the years. In 2017 the number of students jumped to 9,265 which makes up for 26.67 percent of the student count according to the Data Mart.

The number of students from ages 20 to 24 has also increased. In 2012, there were 10,868 students counted which counted for 34.88 percent of the college count according to the Data Mart.

In 2017, the count increased by 2.1 percent and was recorded at 12,845 students according to the Data Mart.

Robin Dreizler Dean of Enrollment thinks there are many many reasons why students ages 20 to 24 make up such a large percentage of the population on campus.

“I’ve seen trends like that over the years that I’ve been in education and sometimes it’s tied to the economy a little bit and what that person is doing if there are jobs[and if there are no jobs],” Dreizler said.

But, there usually students that went to universities that couldn’t attend for whatever reason or they are looking for some sort of job training.

24-year-old film major Anthony Chatman has come back to school and is following his dream.

“Since I was young I always loved movies and TV shows besides playing video games, Chatman said, “I always felt like those were ways I could escape reality and dive into a new world”.

After graduating from Lawndale high school Chatman quickly went to work at places like Target and Best Buy and soon realized that it wasn’t for him.

“I didn’t wanna work for someone else’s dream for the rest of my life, I wanted to follow my dreams and make sure they come true,” Chatman said.

Chatman wants to be a director and a screenwriter, he feels like with film and video he will be able to create some crazy and interesting worlds.

”My plans after I get my degree is trying to get paired with someone’s production company, and find my way into making my own films and TV shows come to life,” Chatman said.