INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — More Indiana college students are staying in school in hopes of riding out the economy and emerging with degrees that will help them in a challenging job market, education leaders say.
Indiana University in Bloomington, Ivy Tech Community College and Indiana State University are among the colleges reporting record spring enrollment. Unlike fall figures, which gauge interest in college, the spring numbers are used to track student retention from one semester to the next.
The higher retention rates could pay off for students in Indiana, where the unemployment rate was 9.5 percent in December.
"Spring enrollments are an indicator of persistence," said Teresa Lubbers, Indiana's commissioner for higher education. "And it's not that we just want more people to go to college. We need them to persist and complete their degrees. Otherwise they leave school with nothing but debt."
Thomas L. Harnisch, policy analyst for the American Association of State Colleges and Universities in Washington, said colleges aren't struggling for students. That's typical during recessions and down economies, he said.
""The temptation to leave school for many students is much more subdued. Recessions traditionally do this," he told The Indianapolis Star.
Lesley Love, 18, a University of Indianapolis freshman studying exercise science, said she can't imagine quitting school.
"I am on my path and determined to stay on it," said the Huntington resident, who hopes to work in occupational therapy. "Plus, if I can plow through school and get it over with, then I could have my whole life to have all the money I want, and I would rather have that than worry about an education."
Indiana University officials say spring enrollment at the Bloomington campus has topped 40,000 students for the second year in a row. Ivy Tech has surpassed 120,000 students statewide, the first time it's reached that enrollment in a single term.
Ivy Tech President Tom Snyder said the growth, up 1,500 from last spring, illustrates the college's popularity among older students as well as younger ones.
"We are the school for adult learners in Indiana. Both groups of students are important to the future of our state," he said.
Lubbers said the spring enrollments also reflect a state shift about four years ago to reward schools for graduation numbers and completed credit hours rather than basing support solely on enrollment growth. This year, the Commission for Higher Education has proposed setting aside 5 percent of the overall $1.2 billion in higher education support to reward colleges that do well in such categories.
Lubbers said those efforts show the focus on college completion and that state officials are starting to see "the right kinds of behavior" as a result.
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