October 12, 2000
MORE THAN 96,000 STUDENTS ATTENDING STATE SYSTEM UNIVERSITIES THIS FALL
Contact: Kevin Hensil, khensil@passhe.edu
Enrollment continues to climb at the 14 State System of Higher Education universities, increasing for the fourth straight year to its highest total since 1992.
Ten of the 14 universities showed enrollment gains this fall over a year ago. With 96,275 students enrolled – more than 90 percent of them Pennsylvania residents – the State System continues as the largest provider of higher education in the Commonwealth.
An additional 1,053 students are attending the state-owned universities this semester over Fall 1999, the largest increase since 1990.
West Chester and Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania lead the way with the largest gains, both in the number of new students enrolled and in the percentage increase. West Chester’s enrollment jumped by 382 students, or 3.2 percent, to 12,274, while Shippensburg added 336 students, a 5.0 percent increase, to raise its total student enrollment to 7,012.
Other schools with large enrollment increases this fall include Clarion University of Pennsylvania, which added 164 students; Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania, which added 149 additional students; and Edinboro University of Pennsylvania, which increased its enrollment by 133 students.
California, East Stroudsburg, Lock Haven, Mansfield and Millersville Universities of Pennsylvania also increased their enrollments this semester.
Schools whose enrollments declined are Bloomsburg (19), Cheyney (325), Indiana (32) and Kutztown (36) Universities of Pennsylvania.
(Note: Cheyney University actually experienced a slight increase in undergraduate student enrollment. All of the enrollment decline is at the graduate level and is related to the potential teachers’ strike in the Philadelphia School District. City school teachers who normally take graduate courses offered by Cheyney through the district’s “clusters” did not sign up for classes this Fall. It is expected those students will return once the labor situation between the school district and teachers’ union is resolved.)
The four straight years of enrollment increases for the State System follow a previous five-year decline.
“We are pleased to see the continued enrollment growth at our universities,” said Chancellor James H. McCormick. “It is a clear demonstration of the confidence our students and their families place in our schools, and in their ability to prepare them for the future.”
The State System’s primary mission is to provide students with a high quality education at an affordable cost. Tuition and fees at the 14 universities are the lowest among all four-year colleges and universities in Pennsylvania.
This year’s overall student body comprises 87,534 Pennsylvania residents and 8,741 students from other states and countries.
The State System of Higher Education’s 14 universities offer more than 250 degree and certificate programs in more than 120 areas of study. Nearly 350,000 System alumni live and work in Pennsylvania.
The state-owned universities are Bloomsburg, California, Cheyney, Clarion, East Stroudsburg, Edinboro, Indiana, Kutztown, Lock Haven, Mansfield, Millersville, Shippensburg, Slippery Rock and West Chester Universities of Pennsylvania. The System also operates branch campuses in Clearfield, Kittanning, Oil City and Punxsutawney and several regional centers, including the Dixon University Center in Harrisburg and the University Center for Southwest Pennsylvania in Pittsburgh. The regional centers are part of the Educational Resources Group, which is responsible for coordinating statewide programming.