Roundup Record Tribune & Winnett Times -

“Montana State University-Northern is pleased to announce that our enrollment is up this semester,” commented Jim Potter, Director of University Relations. “This is the first time that we have been up in several years, when most of the campuses in the state are currently experiencing a decline,” said Potter.

MSU-Northern reported today that they have 1086 students attending classes, which is up over last year’s fall enrollment of 1082. MSU-Northern is enjoying significant growth in its education, nursing, and trade programs.

Elementary Education is up 89% over this time last year and their RN to BSN Nursing program is Up 50%. Northern is also seeing growth in their trade programs and have expanded their apprenticeship offerings to include Pipefitting.

“These enrollment increases didn’t just fall out of the sky,” said MSU-Northern’s Chancellor, Greg Kegel. “These wins are due to an intentional and focused strategic plan. Three years ago, we identified these programs as ‘Growth Programs.’ We realized then that these programs needed to grow in order to meet the needs of Montana. Therefore, we made some significant changes to our structure and marketing strategies to help facilitate their growth,” said Kegel.

“The gains we are seeing are a direct result of a lot of hard work,” said Dr. Neil Moisey, MSU-Northern’s Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs. “We have also seen some enrollment shifts in other programs, so the enrollment growth that we are enjoying is offsetting the enrollment fluctuations,” said Moisey.

“We have found that utilizing outside professional advisory boards for each of our programs is one successful strategy that we are employing to facilitate growth,” said Moisey. “We are listening to our advisory boards and adjusting our programs to meet the needs that they have identified. This year we have learned a lot about what it takes to transform a program. We plan to strategically help build many other programs with the same level of focus and commitment,” continued Moisey.

“We are still reviewing our enrollment numbers but at this point, our retention rates are also trending up,” said Potter. “We believe The Little River Institute has played a key role in helping us recruit and retain American Indian students. Their newly renovated facility will soon be open and it will enhance that program’s ability to meet the educational and social needs of our American Indian students,” explained Potter. In addition, concerted efforts in faculty-led tutoring, the efforts of the Student Support Services, and the Registrar’s office have had a strong positive impact on student retention and success.

Some MSU-Northern student demographics are:

85.6% of students are from Montana

46.5% of students are from the Hi-line

42.5% of transfer students come from out of state

26.4% of students are nontraditional.

78% of students are first generation college students

“Last October, MSU-Northern was recognized as the #1 school in the State of Montana for economic mobility, and #15 in the nation. The report focused on the university’s ‘mobility rate,’ or the number of students that started college in the bottom 20 percent of income distribution and reached the top 20 percent,” said Kegel.