College enrollment is down at DV

By Anya Tikka
MILFORD — Delaware Valley's Class of 2016 is down a few points in college enrollment, compared to previous classes.
Seventy-seven percent of the Class of 2016 enrolled in college, compared to 79 percent of the Class of 2014, and 80 percent of the Class of 2015, according to Jennifer Cosentino, the Guidance Department chair, during her presentation at the August school board meeting.
Add enlistments into the military, and the figure rises to 81 percent. Add in non-degree programs, and the figure goes up to 87 percent.
“Many are going to the military or technical programs," Cosentino said.
Students who enlist in the military may intend to enroll in a four-year school in the future, she said. And going straight from technical programs to the work force, certificates in hand, is cost-effective.
“They save money, and won’t have loans,” she said.
Many of those going to either two- or four-year colleges for academic studies also receive scholarships from both local community organizations and colleges, along with athletic scholarships, to the tune of almost $2 million, total.
“The local community is very generous,” she said.
DV's contribution is $160,000, she said.
Cosentino said the scholarships documented are based on the students’ own reporting.
She also listed some of the colleges DV grads are attending (see sidebar).
In addition, the school had three National AP Scholars, although, again, test results are slightly down from previous years.
The district dropout rate is also increasing slightly, up to 1.17 percent in 2014-15, from 1.06 percent and 0.77 percent in the past two years.
DV's average total SAT score shows a more encouraging trend: it’s up to about 1530 (out of a possible 2400), compared to the previous year’s 1510. But it's still low compared to 1563, the average score in 2014.
However, DV still does better than the state as a whole, with an average of 1482 in 2015; and the nation, with an average of 1490 that year, according to the College Board, which administers the SATs.