enrollment

Over the last decade, state funding for Illinois State University has dropped by more than a third after inflation. And it has declined as a share of the total university budget for more than three decades. That could change if the state legislature passes a measure this spring.

Illinois State University President Aondover Tarhule said Thursday in the annual State of the University address that if the university does nothing, it will have a deficit next year that could grow substantially over the next three years.

Enrollment at Heartland Community College in Normal is down slightly both in the number of students and in credit hours taken for the fall semester.

Illinois State University on Thursday reported the largest class of incoming students in history. ISU continues to avoid steep enrollment declines faced by some other state schools.

District 87 is launching a new curriculum for middle and high schoolers enrolled as English language learners — part of an effort to better serve the growing demographic group.

Illinois Wesleyan University had a 16% increase in first-year students to start the school year. Kasey Evans, the associate vice president for enrollment, also says total enrollment rose 3%. That's after a sharp drop last year.

Heartland Community College enrollment grew incrementally to start the new term. Enrollment vice president Sarah Diel-Hunt said student headcount at Heartland is up 1.3%, while credit hours taken dropped by 0.9%.

Latinos are the fastest-growing segment of a declining pool of college applicants, but are less likely than white students to graduate. A workshop organized by Illinois State University's Latin American and Latino Studies program aimed to address the needs of Latino families during the recruitment process and after arriving on campus.

Illinois Wesleyan University in Bloomington has encouraging enrollment data for the fall. IWU President Georgia Nugent said projections from deposits so far suggest IWU is on pace for 500 new first-year students.

Illinois State University has its biggest incoming class in 35 years this fall. Jana Albrecht, the university's associate vice president for enrollment management, said the 3,983 freshmen bring total enrollment to 20,683 students.