LaGrange College enrollment surges
September 27 , 2006
Bolstered by the largest entering freshman class in school history, LaGrange College began its 176 th academic year by reaching several enrollment milestones, including registering a record 1,137 students this fall, according to figures released by the institution.
This year’s total headcount eclipsed the previous all-time high of 1,046, set in fall 2005, by 8.7 percent. The 1,137 figure includes students from the institution’s day and evening programs and from LaGrange College at Albany.
“This is the third consecutive year I’ve had the pleasure to report a record enrollment,” LaGrange College President Stuart Gulley said. “I believe it’s clear that we are making significant strides toward our strategic goal of approaching 1,200 students by 2008.”
The 270-student freshman class that enrolled this fall surpassed 2002’s first-year class of 236 as the largest in school history. Additionally, for the first time since the College’s founding in 1831, men outnumbered women in the ranks of the freshmen student population—a statistic primarily attributable to the introduction of football to the College this year.
“We initiated the football program not only to enhance the student life experience, but also to help meet the key objectives of increasing our male enrollment and our overall enrollment—and that strategy seems to have been effective,” Dr. Gulley said.
Last year, the male student population in the institution’s day program stood at 40 percent. This year, it is 44 percent, and that’s more in line with where the College wants to be, according to Vice President for Enrollment Management Kim Myrick.
“Ultimately, we would like to maintain a gender balance of about 45 percent male and 55 percent female, which represents the national average,” she said.
In addition to establishing historic benchmarks in overall enrollment and freshman class size, the College also boasted a record number of graduate students. The 78 students enrolled in the institution’s MAT and M.Ed. programs this fall bested last year’s record of 60 students by 30 percent.
“I’m pleased with the enrollment numbers we posted this year because we saw such strong growth in so many areas,” Myrick said.
As a result of this fall’s enrollment spike, LaGrange also has reached a new high in the number of students living on campus. With 621 undergraduates now calling the Hill home, the College is only a few matriculants away from reaching the maximum capacity of its residence halls.
“We knew the day would come when we would outgrow our current residence space, and that day is fast approaching,” Dr. Gulley said. “We have studied various options to address the situation, and I’m sure this is an issue that will be examined carefully at our next Board of Trustees meeting in October.”
