Enrollment numbers down at Idaho State University

Idaho State University’s total student enrollment headcount for the fall 2015 census day was 13,133.

This is a decline of 671 students, 4.9 percent, from fall 2014. The total student credit hour production for fall 2015 Census Day is 145,127, a decline of 2.20 percent from the prior year.

“We are working diligently with other Idaho public education institutions, the state and other partners to increase our enrollment, improve student success and to achieve the State Board of Education’s 60 percent goal,” said Laura Woodworth-Ney, ISU provost and vice president for academic affairs. “We continue to support a number of initiatives to help improve the pipeline of students.”

ISU is committed to the State Board of Education’s goal of 60 percent of Idahoans between the ages of 25 and 34 having a certificate or degree by 2020. Some of the initiatives ISU is pursuing for recruitment and retention efforts include the Bengal Bridge, First-Year Transition, START, Career Path Internships programs and partnerships with community colleges, said Scott Scholes, ISU associate vice president for enrollment management.

ISU is also joining with partners from outside the University to address retention. For example, with funding from the J.A. & Kathryn Albertson Foundation Continuous Enrollment Initiative, ISU College of Technology developed the Successful Transitions and Retention Track (START) program. This program offers a rigorous series of interventions focused on supporting underprepared students as they transition and persist in the college environment.

“We are committed to the challenge of providing a greater number of higher education opportunities to the citizens of Southeast Idaho and the entire state,” Scholes said. “Student success efforts are key to this challenge. We will continue to work with colleagues across campus and with community and government partners to grow and sustain programs aimed at providing access to college and to assisting students while they are attending ISU.”