Title: ELCA Colleges See Steep Enrollment Rise
ELCA NEWS SERVICE

March 19, 1998

ELCA COLLEGES SEE STEEP ENROLLMENT RISE
98-056-RK

     CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Freshman enrollment at the Evangelical Lutheran
Church in America's 28 colleges and universities has increased by 17
percent over the past year, according to a report received by the ELCA
Division for Higher Education and Schools board meeting here March 13-15.
     College officials cited a larger pool of high school seniors and more
effective recruitment as major factors in the increase.
     Schools reporting the highest increases were Bethany College,
Lindsborg, Kan.; California Lutheran University, Thousand Oaks; Capital
University, Columbus, Ohio; Carthage College, Kenosha, Wis.; Concordia
College, Moorhead, Minn.; Dana College, Blair, Neb.; Gettysburg College;
Gettysburg, Pa.; Lenoir-Rhyne College, Hickory, N.C.; Luther College,
Decorah, Iowa; Midland Lutheran College, Fremont, Neb.; Pacific Lutheran
University, Tacoma, Wash.; Roanoke College, Salem, Va.; Suomi College,
Hancock, Mich.; Texas Lutheran University, Seguin, Texas; Thiel College,
Greenville, Pa., Wartburg College, Waverly, Iowa; and Wittenberg
University, Springfield, Ohio.
     In other action the board:
+ Voted unanimously to set up a Global Educators Network, together with the
ELCA Division for Global Mission to provide a structure for dealing with
international teaching opportunities. A report from a consultation earlier
this year on global education said "education could become the track on
which mission will run in the next century."
+ Noted that the number of ELCA schools has increased by 400 over the last
18 months to 2,218. Of that total, 1,961 are early childhood education
centers, 234 are elementary programs and 23 are ELCA and affiliated high
schools.
+ Learned that 63 percent of the students in ELCA seminaries were educated
either at Lutheran colleges or at institutions with ELCA campus ministries.


For information contact:
Ann Hafften, Director (773) 380-2958 or [log in to unmask]
http://www.elca.org/co/news/current.html