IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 9-18-07 CONTACT: PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICE
SILVER CITY--Preliminary enrollment figures for the fall 2007 semester at Western New Mexico University show enrollment is up as of census date by more than five percent in both head count and student credit hours when compared to the same period last year.
“Enrollment is heading in the right direction and, hopefully, this is an indicator of things to come,” said Dr. Chris Farren, WNMU vice president of student affairs. “We’re up in almost every category, especially in the first-time, full-time freshman area. We experienced an 18 percent increase in new freshman this semester. The academic preparation of the freshman class also seems to be higher than in previous years as indicated by the higher ACT and SAT scores.”
In addition, online classes generated some 3000 student credit hours this semester, a 31.5 percent increase. A primary focus in the future will be to offer more online programs, said Farren.
“When you experience this kind of an increase it means the recruitment efforts have been effective. Recruitment has shifted to a university-wide endeavor; the faculty and staff have all contributed,” he said.
We have also made better use of our scholarships, added new programs and courses, and retention efforts utilizing our advising center and student success program appear to be succeeding. The Foundations of Excellence initiative currently underway at WNMU is pointed towards improving the first year experience for students; hopefully, this will help us improve our retention as well, added Farren.
According to Betsy Miller, WNMU Registrar, preliminary enrollment figures show that 2726 total students were attending classes at Western on census date compared to 2581 last year on census date, an increase of 145 students this semester or 5.6 percent. The overall total includes figures from the main campus in Silver City and extended education centers located in Deming, Gallup and Truth or Consequences. The total credit hours reported for all campuses for this fall semester are 26,534 compared to 25,072 for last year at census date, up 1462 credit hours or 5.8 percent.
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