NORTHRIDGE : Cal State Begins Semester With Smaller Enrollment

Earthquake-battered Cal State Northridge launched the fall semester Monday with its smallest enrollment in 21 years, and students said opening day on the still topsy-turvy campus was much less confusing than last spring’s chaotic start.

There were the predictable problems with a 353-acre campus still largely housed in portable bungalows as class location changes sent students on futile hunts, and a lack of air conditioning in some areas left people sweltering.

University officials on Monday reported that fall enrollment as of the end of last week was 23,379, down 10% from last fall’s 26,023 figure at the same time and the lowest figure for a pre-fall semester tally since 1973.