President Paul Sechrist recently told a class of students, “Oklahoma City Community College is one of the largest single campus community colleges in the na­tion.” Statistics show he’s right. OCCC is one of 992 public community colleges across the U.S.

According to community­collegereview.com, OCCC’s student headcount averages around 14,000, with 36 percent enrolled as full-time students and 64 percent as part-time students. The national average is around 1,300 students, 45 percent of them full-time and 55 percent part-time.

OCCC’s student population has increased by 12 percent over the past five years, accord­ing to the site.

Business and Finance Vice President John Boyd said there can be a direct correlation be­tween the size of the campus and the student headcount.

“We have 160 acres and a million square feet,” he said.

“We do have the largest single campus occu­pancy and, in terms of students, we’re one of the largest in the nation.

“Most campuses with the number of students that we have, have mul­tiple campuses.”

It’s not the only way OCCC compares posi­tively to other commu­nity colleges, Boyd said. He said OCCC is below the national average in terms of cost.

The average tuition at OCCC is $2,476.60 for 30 credit hours. Nationwide, most com­munity colleges tuition rates average $6,000 for the same hours.

According to the Fis­cal Year 2015 report, OCCC also offers the lowest tuition of all two-year colleges in the state — $118.50 per-credit-hour cheaper than Rose State College, the second lowest.

Tulsa Community College’s tuition is more than $2,600 for 30 credit hours, while OSU-OKC and Redlands Community College both aver­age a little more than $3,000.

When it comes to fees, OCCC —at an average at $763.50 for 30 credit hours —ranks higher than Redlands Community College, Rose State and OSU-OKC. At $896 per 30 credit hours, only Tulsa Community College charges higher fees than OCCC.

However, the overall cost of OCCC is still cheaper when fees are added at $3,240. The other state community colleges start at $3,255 and go up to more than $3,500.

Boyd said, in addition to the low costs, part of what makes OCCC a better campus is the open environ­ment.

“I think we promote di­versity, [and] … we have a welcoming culture,” he said.

He said OCCC’s location also contributes to it being a better campus than some other community colleges.

“From where I sit, I think we have a modern campus with adequate parking, we have affordable price, we have a diverse campus en­vironment, we have open admissions, we have a beautiful campus,” he said.

“That’s what makes Okla­homa City Community College better in some ways than most.”

For more information about OCCC’s national stand­ings, visit www.community­collegereview.com/school_ overview/1033.

To contact Bryce McElhaney, email editor@occc.edu