RE: The about mizzou's enrollment decline

Posted on: May 22, 2017 at 13:37:59 CT

"Missouri is not projected to grow much in population in the near future, said Pelema I. Morrice, Mizzou’s vice provost for enrollment management. Neither are bordering states like Illinois and Iowa, from which Missouri pulls many of its students."

"The University of Illinois system is making a concerted effort to expand its enrollment, a move that has probably lured away some prospective Mizzou students, Mr. Gahl said."

"Another problem is not unique to Missouri: a loss of international students who are perhaps wary of the Trump administration and the president’s hard-line views on immigration and Islam. Mr. Morrice said Mizzou had "some international markets that we’ve got some concerns about.""

"On a positive note, Mr. Morrice said, student retention is good. About 85 percent of the 2015 freshman class enrolled as sophomores, he said, the third-highest rate in institutional history."

"It’s difficult to reverse enrollment declines quickly, said Don Hossler, an emeritus professor of educational leadership and policy studies at the University of Southern California. Institutions have two primary levers to try to bolster enrollment: how selective they are, and how much financial aid they award. "Improving marketing alone," Mr. Hossler said, "is not going to have much of a short-term effect.""

"In the end, it’s not necessarily a bad thing that Mizzou is losing certain kinds of students, said Mr. Hudson, the journalism professor. He pointed to people who might criticize the group that led the 2015 demonstrations, a collective named for the year the university admitted its first black students. "Maybe," he said, "we don’t want students who aren’t open to the issues that were raised by Concerned Student 1950.""