Student Population

It's eleven o'clock and chapel has just ended. Out from the Multi-Purpose Center pour thousands of Liberty Students. Flurries of skirts and tiesdriftby, arms wave and a steady stream of people make their way to classes.

Does this stream evertrickle thin? Will Liberty ever worry aboutfilling thedorms?At leastforthenextfiveto ten years, research suggests, colleges across the country could have some problem with low student enrollment.

It allbegan afterWorld War II and before the Korean conflict, when the phenomenon known as the "Baby Boom" occurred.People settled back into post-war life, and the Baby Boomers married and raised families.

Where does this leave us now? Predictably,the children of the Baby Boomers are just now beginning to graduate from high school.Colleges and universities could experience a slump inenrollment untilthosechildren startenrolling. Liberty, however, witnessed an increasein enrollment thisyear.Ralph Brasure, directorof InstitutionalResearch and Sta- tistics,said Liberty experienced a 52% increaseinenrollment, placingitsixthin the state's overall enrollment. Brasure said Liberty has 16,605 total students, with LUSLLL making up 11,519ofthose and resident students equaling 5,086. Thereare3,306 dorm studentsat Liberty and 1,780 town students. The university represents30 foreignnationsand boasts of 90 foreign students. These figures show Liberty as the fastestgrowinginstitutioninVirginia, public andprivate. Brasure said colleges should expect an increaseinenrollmentby 1995to the year2000. Virginia'shighschoolsfaceda drop in enrollment thisyear,a redflag forcollegesnextyear.

"Collegesand institutionsacross the nation should notbe alarmed,"Brasure said, "becauseresearchersforyearshave predicted low enrollments, which have yettohappen."

Libertyisre-affirmedinitsaccreditation every 10 years to insure highstandards of faculty qualifications and academic excellence.Brasure said that Libertyoffers thesame academic standards as other public and privateuniversities inVirginia.

Felicia Halstead