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Half of Pennsylvania’s state universities saw enrollment rise this fall

Overall, enrollment in Pennsylvania's state university system, or PASSHE, fell 2.2%, to 82,688, but freshmen climbed 3.4% to 16,203.

West Chester University saw its largest ever enrollment of first-time students, including freshmen and transfers.
West Chester University saw its largest ever enrollment of first-time students, including freshmen and transfers.Read moreElizabeth Robertson / MCT

Pennsylvania’s state universities continued their more than decade-long decline in overall enrollment this fall but saw the number of new students increase for the second consecutive year.

And state system leaders say that’s cause for hope.

“More freshmen and transfer students are choosing state system universities, and that is a very encouraging trend for the state-owned universities and our efforts to address worker shortages in Pennsylvania,” said Cynthia Shapira, chair of the system’s board of governors. “The state system has frozen tuition and aligned academic programs to in-demand jobs, and two straight years of new-student enrollment growth shows that is what students want.”

» READ MORE: We surveyed 20 local universities about enrollment. Here’s what they’re seeing.

First-time enrollment across the system’s 10 schools climbed 3.4% or 527 students, to 16,203.

But overall enrollment in the system fell 2.2%, to 82,688. That’s a much smaller percentage decline than last year, which was 4.6%, and the year before in 2021, which was 5.4%. This year’s enrollment slide was more on par with percentage declines from most pre-pandemic years, going back to 2012.

Notably, the biggest overall declines in enrollment came at the two universities that were the result of mergers over a year ago, signaling continuing challenges there, though one of them, Commonwealth University, at least was bolstered by an 11.8% uptick in freshmen.

Since 2010, when enrollment was nearly 120,000, the system has lost more than 30% of its students.

Daniel Greenstein, system chancellor, said the system should hit its enrollment bottom this year or next, but nationally another dip in high school students is expected in 2025. What impact that will have is uncertain.

» READ MORE: Widener University notes 67% increase in freshman enrollment, its largest first-year class in history

“If we’re able to work closely with the General Assembly to come up with more affordable four-year pathways, I think we can grow substantially,” he said. “If we can’t, at the cliff, we’re going to get smaller probably.”

» READ MORE: Attention Pa. state students: Your tuition costs will remain the same for another year

Cost definitely matters, he said, which is why the system has frozen tuition for five consecutive years at $7,716.

Enrollments at many other colleges have fallen in recent years due in part to the pandemic and a lower numbers of high school students. The Inquirer surveyed 20 local colleges earlier this fall and slightly more than half were up in overall enrollment from last year.

Here are some other takeaways from the enrollment numbers

  1. Five of the 10 universities in Pennsylvania’s system charted overall enrollment increases this fall, with East Stroudsburg leading the way, up 6% or 311 students, followed by Indiana, up 4.8% or 422 students, and Cheyney, up 4.5% or 18 students. Also up were Slippery Rock and Shippensburg.

  2. Kutztown, Millersville, and West Chester saw slight declines. Commonwealth University, which was formed by the merger of Bloomsburg, Lock Haven, and Mansfield, saw an 8.1% or 985-student decline. Even worse was PennWest, formed by the merger of Edinboro, Clarion, and California, which lost 11.5% or 1,473 students. “We’re learning more about what it means to be in Western Pennsylvania and the demographic challenges and price challenges that are particularly tough for those schools,” Greenstein said.

  3. Seven of the 10 universities had an increase in first-time students. East Stroudsburg University saw the biggest jump in freshmen, up more than 21% to 1,399. Cheyney was up 30 freshmen or 15.2%, to 227, and Indiana 15% to 2,025.

  4. West Chester rose 2.7% to 3,087, its largest freshman class in its history, and also recorded a 4% increase in out-of-state students. Other colleges that exceeded their first-time enrollments from 2019 before the pandemic include East Stroudsburg, Cheyney, Indiana, and Kutztown, the system said.

  5. Only Kutztown, Millersville, and PennWest had a decline in first-time students.