October 5, 2018 A bi-weekly report from the Board of Higher Education

The following fall enrollment snapshot for the Illinois public universities was produced using data collected over the last four academic years via IBHE’s Fall Enrollment I survey. It emphasizes full-time equivalent enrollment (FTE)1.

As shown in Table 1, overall fall enrollment in 2018-19 at Illinois public universities (including both undergraduate and graduate programs) declined -1% (-2,301 FTE) from academic year 2017-18 and -5% (-8,878 FTE) from academic year 2015-16. Southern Illinois University Carbondale (-13%), Western Illinois University (-11%), and Northeastern Illinois University (-10%) all experienced enrollment declines of 10% or greater relative to 2017-18. Eastern Illinois University (+10%), the University of Illinois at Chicago (+4%), and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (+2%) experienced an overall increase in fall enrollment relative to 2017-18.

Table 1: Combined Undergraduate and Graduate Enrollment (based on FTE) Combined Enrollment Change in Enrollment in 2018

Fall 2015 Fall 2016 Fall 2017 Fall 2018 From 2015 From 2017 CSU 3,618 2,734 2,429 2,267 -37% -7% EIU 7,282 6,234 5,339 5,892 -19% 10% GSU 3,920 3,886 3,554 3,320 -15% -7% ISU 18,183 18,533 18,308 18,115 0% -1% NEIU 6,366 6,101 5,777 5,201 -18% -10% NIU 16,502 15,712 14,982 14,352 -13% -4% SIUC 14,995 13,880 12,463 10,851 -28% -13% SIUE 11,985 11,870 11,523 10,942 -9% -5% UIC 28,687 28,935 30,418 31,620 10% 4% UIS 3,921 3,985 3,526 3,211 -18% -9% UIUC 47,644 48,765 49,634 50,755 7% 2% WIU 9,561 8,934 8,134 7,260 -24% -11% Total 172,664 169,569 166,087 163,786 -5% -1%

Undergraduate Enrollment (FTE)

Overall undergraduate fall enrollment at public universities declined -2% (-2,249 FTE) from academic year 2017-18 to 2018-19 and -6% (-8,405 FTE) when compared to 2015-16. As shown in Table 2, Southern Illinois University Carbondale (-14%), Northeastern Illinois University (-11%), and Western Illinois University (-11%) experienced undergraduate enrollment declines of greater than 10% from

1 Full-time equivalent (FTE) is a single value that includes all attempted credit hours for all students (full- and part-time) converted into a full-time basis by program level (undergraduate, graduate, and professional). For example, 15 undergraduate hours are the equivalent of one undergraduate FTE and 12 graduate hours are the equivalent of one graduate FTE.

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2017-18 to 2018-19. Eastern Illinois University (+11%) and the University of Illinois at Chicago experienced increases in undergraduate enrollment (+8%) relative to 2017-18. The overall enrollment decline at public universities in 2018-19 can be mostly attributed to the decrease in undergraduate enrollment.

Table 2: Undergraduate Enrollment (based on FTE) Undergraduate Enrollment Change in Enrollment in 2018

Fall 2015 Fall 2016 Fall 2017 Fall 2018 From 2015 From 2017 CSU 2,571 1,721 1,535 1,500 -42% -2% EIU 6,429 5,264 4,442 4,944 -23% 11% GSU 2,447 2,456 2,387 2,332 -5% -2% ISU 16,792 17,056 16,826 16,559 -1% -2% NEIU 5,522 5,222 4,902 4,380 -21% -11% NIU 13,328 12,649 12,136 11,601 -13% -4% SIUC 11,670 10,829 9,763 8,369 -28% -14% SIUE 10,350 10,273 9,912 9,302 -10% -6% UIC 17,022 17,416 18,949 20,385 20% 8% UIS 2,265 2,287 2,282 2,162 -5% -5% UIUC 34,041 34,592 34,573 34,702 2% 0% WIU 8,407 7,818 6,981 6,203 -26% -11% Total 130,844 127,583 124,688 122,439 -6% -2%

Graduate Enrollment (FTE)

Total graduate enrollment at public universities in the fall of 2018-19 was nearly identical to 2017-18. As shown in Table 3, the University of Illinois at Springfield (-16%), Governors State University (-15%), and Chicago State University (-14%) had the largest declines in fall graduate enrollment relative to 2017-18. The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (+6%) and Eastern Illinois University (+6%) experienced an increase in graduate enrollment relative to 2017-18, as did Illinois State University (+5%) and Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (+2%).

Table 3: Graduate Enrollment (based on FTE) Graduate Enrollment Change in Enrollment in 2018

Fall 2015 Fall 2016 Fall 2017 Fall 2018 From 2015 From 2017 CSU 1,047 1,013 894 767 -27% -14% EIU 853 970 897 948 11% 6% GSU 1,473 1,430 1,167 988 -33% -15% ISU 1,391 1,477 1,482 1,556 12% 5% NEIU 844 879 875 821 -3% -6% NIU 3,174 3,063 2,846 2,751 -13% -3% SIUC 3,325 3,051 2,700 2,482 -25% -8% SIUE 1,635 1,597 1,611 1,640 0% 2% UIC 11,665 11,519 11,469 11,235 -4% -2% UIS 1,656 1,698 1,244 1,049 -37% -16% UIUC 13,603 14,173 15,079 16,053 18% 6% WIU 1,154 1,116 1,153 1,057 -8% -8% Total 41,820 41,986 41,399 41,347 -1% 0%

Click here for the IBHE DataPoint.

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The Illinois Community College Board (ICCB) unanimously named Brian Durham, EdD, as its new executive director. Dr. Durham will begin his new assignment on December 1.

“Dr. Durham has spent the last 16 years at the ICCB where he has been at the forefront of implementing policies to improve outcomes for community college students,” said ICCB Chair Dr. Lazaro Lopez.

Dr. Durham currently serves as Deputy Director for Academic Affairs at the ICCB. In this capacity, he leads baccalaureate/transfer education, Career & Technical Education (CTE), and remedial education responsibilities of the ICCB.

“I am honored that the Board chose me as its new executive director,” said Durham. “I am committed to ensuring that the community college system provides students with smooth transitions into and across higher education and the training they need for in demand occupations with economic value. Our community college system will continue to be the best in the country.”

ICCB’s current executive director, Dr. Karen Hunter Anderson, will retire November 30. “I have watched Brian tackle a number of complex issues during his time at the agency with the utmost professionalism,” said Anderson. “His combination of educational background, innovative spirit, and leadership experience will serve the agency and the community college system well.”

Dr. Durham received his doctorate from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, his master’s degree from Southern Illinois University Carbondale, and his bachelor’s degree from the University of Evansville.

Rebecca Sandefur, a professor of sociology and of law at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, has been awarded a 2018 MacArthur Fellowship, commonly known as a “genius grant,” from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.

The fellowship carries an unrestricted $625,000 stipend to be used as the fellow sees best. Sandefur said she plans to use the award “to help bring new attention and new energy to solving what has been so far an intractable problem, the critical issue of access to civil justice.”

Sandefur’s research has focused on how legal services are delivered and consumed, especially in low-income communities, and has sought to promote a new, evidence-based approach to increasing access to civil justice for those communities.

According to the MacArthur Foundation’s description of the program, fellows are chosen according to three criteria: “Exceptional creativity, promise for important future advances based on a track record of significant accomplishments, and potential for the fellowship to facilitate subsequent creative work.”

Sandefur holds a PhD and master’s degree from the and a bachelor’s degree from the University of Wisconsin–Madison. She also is a Faculty Fellow of the American Bar Foundation and a central contributor to the Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development’s new global program on access to justice.

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The Illinois Community College Board (ICCB) has launched a new statewide billboard campaign aimed at the nearly 1.3 million Illinois’ adults that have less than a high school diploma or equivalent and close to 2.8 million Illinoisans that speak a language other than English as their primary language.

The “Do it for You, Do it for Them” campaign encourages adults to obtain the knowledge and skills necessary for employment and self-sufficiency through high school equivalency testing, adult literacy programs, English as a Second Language instruction, and college and career preparation.

“Do it for you underscores the role that adult education and literacy programs play in opening the door to education and employment that leads to better wages and a higher standard of living. Do it for them emphasizes the transformative effect that adult education and literacy programs have on families and communities,” said Jennifer Foster, ICCB Director of Adult Education and Workforce.

The campaign also includes a toll-free phone number and website, ILAdultEducation.org, that provides comprehensive information on the high school equivalency testing, career pathways, and a zip code locator to identify local adult education and literacy programs.

Elizabeth Wilson, Eastern Illinois University Cindy Bettinger, Eastern Illinois University

Abigail Reflections

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Alissa Tattas, Minha Kim, Moraine Valley Community College Moraine Valley Community College

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LIFE

WUIS 91.9/NPR Illinois: A different path to a degree, September 25, 2018.

Washington Post: Maybe tuition-free community college comes at too high a price, September 28, 2018.

Chicago Sun-Times: ‘College completion crisis’ spurs pledge to end racial, income gaps by 2025, October 2, 2018.

WLS/ABC 7 Chicago: Illinois colleges, university work to help first-generation students graduate, October 2, 2018.

Inside Higher Ed: New tool for FAFSA completion, October 3, 2018.

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