Enrollment reports after the census date for the 2003 Summer I semester at UNT show an unofficial 1.9 percent decrease over the first summer term of 2002.

This year's enrollment of 12,814 students is 252 students lower than the total Summer I students last year.

However, the decline this year (and the significant increase last year) can be directly traced to the number of students participating in a one-year grant program in the College of Education, according to Joneel Harris, associate vice president for enrollment management.

"The College of Education enrolled 755 students last summer in a special Telecommunications Infrastructure Fund program that, when coupled with the university's regular growth pattern, boosted our enrollment last summer by 14.6 percent," Harris says. "When you take the students in the TIF program completely out of the equation last year and this year, you see that our numbers in fact show a modest increase."

This year's enrollment of 12,814 students included 354 TIF students, and last year's enrollment of 13,066 students included 755 TIF students. Without TIF students in either count, the numbers become 12,460 this year and 12,311 last year, an increase of 149 students, or 1.2 percent.

The TIF program also affected May Mini-mester enrollment, which was down 5.5 percent, or 227 students, when compared directly with last May. However, this year's mini-mester enrollment of 3,886 included zero TIF students, while last year's mini-mester enrollment of 4,113 included 140 TIF students — creating a modest decrease of just 87 students, or 2.2 percent, when TIF students are removed.

However, Harris says other factors, such as the reduced number of classes offered and the prolonged construction on Interstate 35E, also likely played a part in keeping the university's enrollment from following its steady growth pattern.

UNT enrollment figures are not official until they are certified by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board later this year.

BY RODDY WOLPER rwolper@unt.edu

Other featured articles in this issue

• More changes on the way for UNT employee prescription drug plan
• UNT work attire standards relax as temperatures go up
• Verizon donates $50,000 to UNT's TAMS
• Faculty Senate holds final 2002-03 meeting
• UNT chancellor hits the books
• First Flight Week planned to help incoming freshmen learn about life on campus
• National String Project Consortium extends College of Music funding with $10,000 grant
• UNT holds first-of-its-kind bilingual education camp for high school students
• UNT professor: New Harry Potter book will continue inspiring reading, discussion between adults and children

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