For Release April 17

PIERRE—Today the Board of Regents released enrollment figures for the Spring 1998 semester, which show an overall decline from Spring 1997 levels.

System-wide, headcount enrollment for Spring 1998 is 22,024 students—a decrease of 1.88% from 22,446 students in Spring 1997. In full-time equivalent enrollment, the university system is at 19,262.9—a decrease of 1.91% from 19,637.8 in Spring 1997.

Headcount enrollment differences between Spring 1997 and Spring 1998 range from an increase of 24.03% at Dakota State University to a decrease of 7.64% at Black Hills State University. South Dakota State University has the largest single headcount enrollment at 7,586 students with the University of South Dakota second at 6,258.

Regents Executive Director Robert T. Tad Perry said, "We are very pleased with the dramatic increase in the number of students at Dakota State University. I think that this speaks well both for the kind of programs offered there and for the quality of education provided by DSU. DSU is highly competitive. Its recognition as the twelfth most wired college campus in the nation proves that its programs are beginning to receive the attention they deserve." Yahoo! Internet Life magazine recently named DSU to the list of campuses that provide the most access and exposure to the Internet.

Perry noted that the small decrease in enrollment system-wide, less than 2%, indicated a leveling off in the declining student enrollments experienced by the system in the last few years. "We think that we have reached a turning point. Enrollments will start climbing as students realize that public university education in South Dakota is a good deal, and important for their future." The spring to spring enrollment decrease in the regental system has averaged 3.7% for three years.

The Board also released enrollment figures for fourteen private and tribal colleges in South Dakota. The increase in non-state institution enrollment was 7.23%, from a headcount of 8,622 in Spring 1997 to 9,245 in Spring 1998. Eight of the private and tribal colleges experienced increases, ranging from five students at Oglala Lakota to 166 at Huron University. Five institutions saw decreases and one, Dakota Wesleyan, remained stable. In addition, Colorado Technical University in Sioux Falls enrolled a total of 384 students in its first spring term.

Enrollment in Colorado Technical University-Sioux Falls represents 62% of the total increase for all non-state institutions. "Colorado Tech began operations in Sioux Falls in the fall of 1997, so its total enrollment appears as an increase of this spring over last spring," said Perry. Huron University is a branch of Colorado Tech.

Overall, this year’s figures show a total of 31,269 students attending South Dakota higher education institutions, an increase of 0.65%. "Enrollments at Dakota State University and Colorado Tech reflect the recognition by South Dakotans that training in high tech fields, especially the kind of training provided by higher education institutions, is necessary to compete in the increasingly technological economy we live in," said Perry. "It is in the state’s best interest to encourage life-long learning. The public universities are very aware of this role and we intend to provide that service."

Note: At regental institutions, FTE is 15 credit hours per semester for undergraduates and 12 credit hours for graduate students.