Boosted by a record number of new freshmen, Henderson State University's undergraduate enrollment increased for the fall semester for the first time since the fall of 2014.
The university said 3,009 undergraduates had enrolled in the Arkadelphia school as of the 11th day of classes and that an additional 390 high school students are participating in concurrent course offerings. Last fall, the school had 2,831 undergraduates and six concurrent students, Henderson spokesman Tina Hall said.
Colleges and universities were required to report enrollment data to the Arkansas Department of Higher Education by Wednesday.
A record 855 first-time freshmen marked a 38 percent increase over last year's first-time freshmen and contributed to the increased undergraduate enrollment.
The university also said 559 graduate students had enrolled this fall compared with 499 last fall, bringing total full-time enrollment to 3,568 compared with 3,336 last fall, Hall said. Those numbers do not include high school students.
"We're hoping that these numbers will continue to remain strong," Henderson President Glen Jones said.
The university must focus on retention, not solely on first-time freshmen, Jones said. "The emphasis is really more on who finishes ... more so than ever before. ... We know the work is just beginning."
The numbers, along with the university's retention rate, are important for Henderson, which has experienced budget problems partly from declining enrollment. The school made budget cuts after incurring a $3.2 million deficit at the start of the past fiscal year. The board of trustees approved a balanced budget for this fiscal year.
The university is to report its retention rate to the state in October. Under the state's current funding model, universities get more money if they increase graduation rates.
Hall said the retention rate for both the fall 2016 and fall 2017 semesters was 65 percent. "That was a 5 percent increase from fall 2015, which was 60 percent," she said.
"Based on a preliminary estimate, we expect the fall 2018 numbers to align with 2017 data. We are in the process of verifying data for submission," she added.
Henderson has a small campus in Hot Springs, and its enrollment numbers are included.
Jones and Kenneth Taylor, vice provost and dean of Henderson's graduate school, credited the increased graduate enrollment to new programs.
"Anticipation of new graduate degree programs offered at Henderson have now prompted more individuals to consider our university as a leading option to earn a graduate degree that will help them advance in their profession," Taylor said in a news release.
Henderson this fall started an online master of science degree in nursing with two tracks, including family nurse practitioner and nursing administrator. "[The program] was fully subscribed to for the first time," Jones said.
Further, the president said, "We have doubled the size of our aviation class this year."
Jones said the university has been working on retention in part by making "more investments in academic advising" and offering more resources for those students who are conditionally admitted to Henderson. "They are the most at-risk students," he said.
"We are just making certain that when students come here that they understand what the expectations are," he added.
Jones said the school's head of admissions also has been using techniques to identify prospective students early in the recruitment process.
Jones said the incoming freshman class is "one of the most academically prepared" to attend Henderson with an average 3.36 grade-point average. The class also has one of the highest averages on the ACT, he said.
Campus housing statistics gathered late last week showed 1,680 students living on campus this fall, compared with 1,454 in 2017, the news release said.
Henderson has 49 international students this fall; it had 50 last year.
State Desk on 09/13/2018