For the fourth year in a row, Flathead Valley Community College has seen its full-time spring enrollment drop.

For spring semester, FVCC has 2,400 enrolled students, 10 more than the year before. At the same time, the number of full-time equivalent students — which is often tied to funding — dropped by 3.2 percent to 1,326.

The steady decline began in 2011 as the Flathead Valley regained its footing from the economic crisis and more job opportunities developed.

FVCC President Jane Karas said the college is still adjusting from its record levels of enrollment during the recession.

“We’re still above where we were at in 2008 before the recession,” Karas said, adding that the school had a 55 percent increase over two years. “We really are seeing what would have been a normal growth without those record years.”

Karas said she believes the small growth in the overall student body could eventually lead to an increase in the college’s average of full-time students.

FVCC has fared well compared to other colleges and universities across Montana that have also have experienced declines.

The Montana University System reported that two-year colleges across the state had a 6.7 percent student decrease from 2014 to 2015. In comparison, FVCC enrollment fell by less than 5 percent.

Brad Eldredge, vice president of Instruction and Student Services at FVCC, said the college was able to plan for the slow decrease in enrollment. He said no major budget cuts have taken place so far.

“Of course when our enrollment goes down we have fewer tuition dollars as well, but part of our funding creates some buffers to take some of the volatility out of our budget,” Eldredge said.

The funding that relies on the number of full-time equivalent students is formula-based, not one for one, Eldredge said. That difference allows the college to plan years in advance instead of rushing to readjusting each semester, he said.

Reporter Katheryn Houghton may be reached at 758-4436 or by email at [email protected].