MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — The West Virginia University Board of Governors received an update at its meeting Friday on multiple construction projects as well as enrollment and retention.
The projects at Milan Puskar Stadium, Hodges Hall and the new business school are on schedule.
As for enrollment, Sharon Martin, WVU’s vice president of university relations and enrollment management, told the board that enrollment is up for 2019.
“We had a difficult year in 2018, but we rebounded this year by about 200 additional first-time freshmen,” she said. “We are definitely seeing a growth pattern and anticipating that getting even larger in the coming year.”
As for 2018, she cited a decline in student population in West Virginia and contiguous states, as well as fewer international students.
Martin added that there is still a national conversation about the value of a college degree and they are working to prove to prospective students that higher education has value and WVU is the place to get.
Provost Maryanne Reed says retention has also increased more than three percent from last year.
“It’s really a team effort so we look at the academic experience of the student, whether they are having other problems outside of that, they might have financial problems,” she said.