Given the uproar about expensive colleges and universities prompting a forgiveness of some federal student loan debt, one would think those seeking higher education would be considering community and technical colleges.

In Ohio, it appears they are not.

According to the Columbus Dispatch, enrollment at two-year colleges peaked during the Great Recession of 2007-09, and has been steadily declining since. Not even a pandemic changed that pattern. There was a 6.3% decrease in two-year college enrollment in fall 2020 from the previous year, according to the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center.

Those experts suggest a healthy job market, a declining number of high school graduates and pandemic fatigue are to blame for the reduced number of students choosing two-year colleges.

But when it comes to the job market, here one of the problems is potential workers not having the skills needed to fill jobs in fields where there is most demand. Community and technical colleges could be the perfect solution. Our region has several good options for receiving a quality education that can quickly prepare someone for the next step.

Parents and potential students will have to be honest with themselves in assessing whether such an option might be better. If they are, then some of them will find the best path forward is shorter and closer to home than they expected.