ISU spring enrollment dips below 8,000

Jan. 27—Indiana State University's spring 2023 enrollment is 7,834 students, down 8.3% from spring 2022, according to university data released late Friday afternoon.

Fall 2022 headcount was 8,658, and fall to spring enrollments typically show a decline after winter commencement. Seven hundred students graduated in December. While fall 2022 headcount was down, freshmen enrollment was up.

ISU has experienced declining enrollments for several years, exacerbated by the pandemic.

Spring 2022 enrollment was 8,541; spring 2021, 9,662. In spring 2020, it was 10,584; in spring 2019, 11,382; and in spring 2018, 11,822.

Since spring 2019, ISU has experienced a 31% spring enrollment decline, or 3,548 fewer students.

On Jan. 19, the Tribune-Star submitted a public records request to ISU for the spring enrollment number. ISU's office of the general counsel responded late Friday afternoon.

Some trends positive

ISU data does point to some positive trends.

The fall 2022 to spring 2023 freshmen persistence rate was 85%, up five points from spring 2022 (80%) and 10 points up from spring 2021 (75%).

"The persistence rate for freshmen is way up," said ISU President Deborah Curtis.

The pandemic has played a role in the declining student numbers overall, she said.

ISU and similar institutions have a higher number of first generation and low income students, and the pandemic has had a stronger impact on those colleges and universities, Curtis said.

"All of the analysis was forever shifted when the pandemic hit," she said. "For Indiana State, with the population we serve, our climb out of that is going to be a little bit slower than everyone else's is because there is a larger number of people we have to convince to get back to (higher education). But we are seeing some progress and we're excited about that."

The pandemic can't become an excuse, she said.

"We have to do some things differently, and that's what the Indiana State Advantage is about. And some of the work we're doing with the Lilly grant money is to say — for those students coming right now, how do we make sure more of them move toward commencement, and how do we encourage on the other end more families and students to say, 'Yes, let's get back into this and pursue that college degree,'" Curtis said.

ISU is using Lilly Endowment funds to improve retention and graduation rates of first-generation students, students of color, and students who qualify for federal Pell Grants.

The Indiana State Advantage, in part, provides scholarships for experiential learning opportunities. It also provides a tuition-free guarantee and a four-year guarantee.

The improved freshmen fall to spring persistence is promising, Curtis said.

"We are moving levers to make sure we graduate more students, so persistence means they are hanging in there at a higher rate," she said.

"If you have fewer freshmen coming in but you are keeping more of them ... that means you're likely to get more of them across the stage at the end than we've been getting. We'll have to see."

She added, "The levers we are trying to move to be able to retain and graduate more students seem to be working right now."

Another factor in fewer numbers from past years is that ISU is "purposefully recruiting students who are most likely to be successful at Indiana State. ... We are making sure that students who attend Indiana State are academically prepared to do that," Curtis said.

For students who aren't quite ready to attend ISU, there is a program called Pathway to Blue, she said. The program is a partnership between Ivy Tech and ISU that assists students in making the transition to college.

Challenges to face

Enrollment declines have had a budget impact, and ISU is in the process of making budget reductions and realignments.

ISU is looking at programs that are in demand, and "we're trying to adjust what resources go to the programs that seem to have a demand," Curtis said.

In making those budgetary changes, "We are trying to live within our means and expand on programs that are in demand," she said.

In November, Curtis announced that the university had to reduce expenses by at least $12 million for the 2023-24 budget.

Also, while ISU has been able to reduce expenses the past few years without layoffs seen at other institutions, "... at this time it is likely that this will no longer be possible," she stated at the time.

The fiscal year 2024 budget begins next July 1.

She also stated at the time that "envisioning who we will be requires realignment of our structure, programs, and resource allocation decisions to meet our future needs and live within our means."

At that time, Curtis outlined the current environment for higher education affecting not just ISU, but institutions across the state and nation:

Indiana's college-going rate as well as number of high school graduates is declining.

Fewer low income and underrepresented students returned to or started college following the pandemic. Many in the broader public have once again begun to question the value of a college education.

"These facts merge into a set of challenges we now face," Curtis stated in November.

Sue Loughlin can be reached at 812-231-4235 or at sue.loughlin@tribstar.com Follow Sue on Twitter @TribStarSue