|
|
 |
Press Release Date: 9/10/2009
LCSC sets all-time enrollment record
Lewis-Clark State College has reached new heights this fall with a record enrollment of 4,200 students and a full-time equivalency of more than 3,001.47, according to the college’s 10th day report.
It marks the first time in the college’s history that enrollment has been above 4,000 and the full-time equivalency has been above 3,000. It is also the fifth straight semester LCSC has set an all-time attendance record.
LCSC’s enrollment is a 6.6 percent increase over last year’s total of 3,940 students and marks an increase of 806 students over the last three years, a 19.2 percent increase.
The strong growth continues a trend under LCSC President Dene K. Thomas. The college’s enrollment was 2,702 for the 2000 Fall Semester when Thomas became president. During her tenure, LCSC has grown 1,498 students, a 55 percent increase.
“Forty-two hundred!’’ Thomas exclaims. “I'm happy. We have climbed the mountain. Right now, my favorite book is ‘The Little Engine that Could.’ Wow! 4,200 is like breaking the sound barrier.
“I'm very pleased that students and parents have confidence in LC. They made a smart choice, and we will work hard to justify their faith in us.”
Thomas credited LCSC’s faculty and staff for their work and dedication to helping the college continue with its healthy growth. She said Dean of Student Services Andy Hanson and his staff have done an outstanding job of helping students find a perfect fit at LCSC.
“We’re very proud of our new enrollment record,” Hanson says. “It represents a lot of hard work from a dedicated faculty and staff who continue to stand ready to serve students from all over the globe.”
The college continues to show impressive growth and set numerous enrollment records this fall, including highs for freshmen direct out of high school, freshmen overall, residents, minority headcount, concurrent enrollment, and total enrollment at LCSC-Coeur d’Alene.
All state schools are required to file 10th-day reports to the State Board of Education. All school enrollment figures are based on the numbers on the 10th day of school. The 10th day of classes at LCSC this fall was Friday, Sept. 4.
“Our fall enrollment includes an interesting mix of students,” Hanson says. Many are here to enjoy a residential experience far away from their hometowns. Still others are here because we are conveniently located near their hometowns thereby creating access to educational opportunities that might otherwise not be available to them. Our college definitely continues to be on the move.”
Along with more students going full-time this semester, LCSC also had a significant enrollment jump in its Nursing & Heath Sciences Division, thanks to Sacajawea Hall, which opened this fall. Sacajawea Hall is the new home to the division as well as labs and classes for the Natural Sciences & Mathematics Division. The Nursing & Health Sciences Division has 615 students enrolled this fall, a jump of 139 students last fall. The Division is now the most popular on campus, taking over from the Business Division, which has 591 students. The Education Division has 571 students.
“We have an excellent faculty, strong and growing programs, and state-of-the-art facilities,” says Tony Fernandez, Vice President for Academic Affairs. “The word is spreading across the region that LCSC is the place to be.”
Fernandez pointed out that over the past few years every LCSC student who applied to graduate health programs was accepted. This includes five students accepted to medical school last year.
The Natural Sciences & Mathematics Division also enjoyed a strong enrollment jump with 394 students, an increase of 41 from a year ago.
“Science students tell us they are coming here because of graduate school placement,” Thomas says. “They’re telling us they are getting into highly-touted programs and are well prepared.”
All six academic and two professional-technical divisions enjoyed enrollment growth.
“LCSC's continued growth pattern illustrates the confidence students and their parents place in us, and I am very pleased,” Thomas says. “Now it is time for all of us to go about the business of learning. What a joy!”
LCSC has1,913 freshmen enrolled this fall. In 2001, LCSC had 1,141 freshmen last year, and two years ago the freshman headcount was at 1,428, nearly 500 less than its current level.
In conjunction, the average age of the LCSC student has now dropped to 24.83 years, the youngest it’s been in at least two decades.
LCSC has 430 students claiming minority status, which is also a record. Native American students total 186, which constitutes another record.
Enrollment at LCSC-Coeur d’Alene is a record 396, a 9.4 percent enrollment increase from a year ago. The biggest jump in LCSC-Coeur d’Alene also is in its Nursing & Health Sciences Division with an increase of 20.
|
|
