UM says latest numbers show stabilizing enrollment

(KPAX) University of Montana leaders say the latest numbers show UM's enrollment is starting to stabilize, although there was still a slight drop from fall to spring semester.

The university has been working for the past few years to stop a constant decline in enrollment that's plagued student numbers for the past decade.

The latest report from UM shows there are 10,247 students enrolled for the spring semester. That's down 2.3 percent from last fall. But UM administrators say it's the smallest drop between those periods in a decade.

Cathy Cole, UM's Vice President for enrollment management, says that's s stark contrast from past years, when enrollment would drop over that span by 7-to-8 percent, with a high of over 9-percent erosion in 2016.

Cole also notes there's typically some drop from fall to spring, as students graduate mid-year, or take a break from classes.

UM reports more than 89-percent of freshmen that started last fall were back for spring classes, showing the impact of UM's efforts to retain those students.