EXPANDING: California Baptist University is one of the top ten fastest growing colleges in the nation.
By Natalie Vargas, Staff Writer
California Baptist University (CBU) was ranked eighth for fastest growing colleges in the Chronicle of Higher Education’s publication of Almanac 2018-2019. According to the CBU Banner, the university’s newspaper, the university was compared to 392 other private, non-profit colleges, classified under “Master’s Colleges and Universities.” The dramatic growth was studied over the span of 10 years. The total student enrollment at CBU in 2006 was a paltry 3,409 students when compared to the enrollment of 9,157 students in the year of 2016, an enrollment increase of 168.6%. The university’s website credits the massive population increase to the students’ positive responses to the academic programs.
CBU, a large university in Riverside, greatly impacts the city’s community. “Riverside will benefit from CBU receiving more students because the interest in our city will spike, bringing about change in multiple aspects of our society,” Poly student, Samantha Flores (11), said. The university is known for small class sizes, allowing students to have a more personal, academic relationship with the professor. “I think CBU is intentionally keeping the class sizes small when they need to be. The relationships you build with professors and students in such small class sizes is unmatched,” CBU sophomore, Kelsie Stevens, said. However, due to CBU’s overall growth, the drivers around CBU may now have reservations about traffic. “Being a commuter, I’m a little worried about how CBU’s growing student population is going to affect not only parking, but traffic,” Stevens said. As the campus grows, the community within Riverside also expands, allowing a greater mix of diversity and culture within the city. “My favorite thing about CBU is the community it’s surrounded with,” Flores said. The city of Riverside will only benefit and develop with CBU’s new population growth. With the 2017-2018 student body consisting of 9,941 students, CBU only projects larger growth to come.