Kent State University students work on their assignments
in the Math Emporium, a state-of-the-art learning center
located in the University Library on the Kent Campus. The
university continues to see growth at its Kent Campus as
recorded enrollment for spring 2014 is up 1.6 percent.

Kent State University continues to see growth at its Kent Campus as the university released its official 15th day census data for spring 2014 recorded enrollment. Unduplicated (or preponderant) headcount at the Kent Campus is up 435 students, or 1.6 percent. Students are counted only once at the campus at which they hold the majority of their course load.

In addition, freshman persistence, which measures the percentage of first-time, full-time freshmen who persist or continue their studies from fall to spring at the institution, at the Kent Campus rose to 93.7 percent. This represents an increase of 1.3 percent from spring 2013 when it was measured at 92.4 percent.

“We continue to see our students return, persisting from fall to spring,” Kent State President Lester A. Lefton says. “This is due to our strategy to enroll more students who are academically motivated and prepared for college, as well as the dedicated members of our academic departments who work closely with students, new freshmen in particular, to help them navigate, persist, succeed and reach the finish line with diploma in hand.”

The university reports 39,591 students for the whole eight-campus system for the spring 2014 semester, compared to 40,559 for spring 2013 semester. While enrollment at the Kent Campus is up with 26,896 students, unduplicated headcount at the Regional Campuses decreased by 1,403 students, or 10 percent, to 12,695 students.

“Due to an improving economy, we saw a decrease in enrollment at our Regional Campuses,” says T. David Garcia, Kent State’s associate vice president for enrollment management. “This change was expected as we typically see enrollment at the Regional Campuses go up when unemployment is up and enrollment go down when unemployment is down. Overall, I’m very pleased with these enrollment numbers.

“The extraordinary efforts of faculty and staff have helped with retaining more students,” Garcia adds. “Their continuous efforts to work with students both in and out of the classroom are paying off significantly.”

Highlights from the spring 2014 enrollment numbers also include:

• Of the Regional Campuses, the Geauga Campus had the largest percentage increase in the number of students with 5.6 percent to 2,754 students in spring 2014 compared to 2,608 in spring 2013 (preponderant).
• Kent State’s School of Digital Sciences and the College of Public Health also continue to show impressive growth. Enrollment at the Kent Campus in the School of Digital Sciences is up 88.2 percent to 224 students, while the College of Public Health is up 18.8 percent to 738 students (preponderant).
• Enrollment in Kent State’s College of Applied Engineering, Sustainability and Technology at the Kent Campus has increased to 948 students, experiencing a notable 5.1 percent growth compared to last year (preponderant).
  

Kent State’s eight campuses are located in Ashtabula, East Liverpool, Geauga, Kent, Salem, Stark, Trumbull and Tuscarawas. For more information about Kent State, visit www.kent.edu.