SIU-Carbondale's focus on attracting to more local students is paying off, according to Chancellor Austin Lane.
Lane pointed that out at last week's Board of Trustees meeting.
"When I came a couple of years ago, the concern was that we were not recruiting locally. We were not focusing on students in our region. Well, that day has changed. We're up for 4.8%. We continue to work those partnerships in our region and red carpet those students."
Lane said the number of students from throughout the state of Illinois is up seven percent, while non-Illinois student numbers are down a little over three percent.
He said African American and Hispanic student enrollment is up, while the number of white students is down, something Lane said his team will work on.
The chancellor said these trends are giving him optimism about what the fall semester enrollment numbers will look like.
