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9/23/2004
Contact:
K.E. Schwab -- 724-738-2199; e-mail:
karl.schwab@sru.edu
SLIPPERY ROCK
UNIVERSITY ENROLLMENT AT ALL-TIME HIGH: 7,928 TAKING
CLASSES
SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. – With 7,928
students attending fall classes for the 2004-05 academic year,
Slippery Rock University has set an all-time student enrollment
record and continues its enrollment growth trend for the fifth
consecutive year.Credit hours undertaken are also at an
all-time high of 110,524, up from last year’s record
106,334.
Based
on the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education standard of
setting the semester’s official enrollment on 15th
day of classes [Sept. 21], SRU’s fall semester enrollment
shows nearly a 2 percent increase over last year. The number beats
the previous high of 7,925, set in 1991, by three
students.
“We
had planned for a 1.5 percent growth, but welcome the 2 percent
growth as more and more high school graduates and transfer students
see the increasing value of a Slippery Rock University
degree,” said President Robert Smith. “We are also
proud that more academically talented students are applying to
Slippery Rock University allowing us to even further increase
academic rigor in the classroom, integrate the classroom with
experiential learning and engage our students in individualized
intellectual experiences.” The president said in addition to
graduating students, the university is also helping create
“competent, caring capable citizens.”
The
current year also includes a jump in out-of-state enrollments to
stand at 423. SRU’s new non-resident tuition reduction plan,
approved last summer by the state system, is credited with helping
boost out-of-state enrollment. The increase represents 66 students
over 2003-04. Out-of-state applicants as freshmen or transfer
students who bring with them a cumulative grade-point-average
of3.0 or better and enroll as full-time students can
receive a 40 percent tuition discount on the out-of-state-rate. The
out-of-state discount is retained as along as the student retains a
3.0 or higher grade-point average at SRU.
Under
Smith’s leadership as provost and vice president of academic
affairs, interim president and as president, the university
launched a detailed plan to address enrollment. SRU had faced an
eight-year enrollment decline to a low of 6,803 in 1999 before
beginning its five-year enrollment increase.
Official
numbers for the year show SRU continues to enroll more women than
men, 4,527 to 3,401 and the year’s headcount for African
Americans continues to increase to stand at 330 this year compared
to 296 a year ago, representing a 11.5 percent increase. The
university’s enrollment of Hispanic students also continues
to rise, showing a 28.8 percent gain this year.
While
SRU’s International Initiatives Program remains strong,
especially in helping students study abroad, the on-campus
enrollment has declined in the last several years due in large
measure to immigration policies restricting international travel
for foreign students seeking to attend classes at SRU and other
higher education institutions across the U.S. Delays in processing
student applications at U.S. embassies around the world is also
cited as slowing international student
applications.
“We
continue to work with immigration officials and others who control
entry of international students and hope that in the near future
some of the restrictions will be eased allowing students who want
to study at SRU permission to enter the country. We think it is
very important, especially to our traditional students to have
exposure to students from other cultures as part of their
education,” said Dr. Donald Kerchis, director of the Office
of International Initiatives.
PN, WPN,
PGN, PR, PT, S
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