While Duluth’s public school enrollment declines college enrollment grows

The DNT did include a graphic from today’s newsprint story on the increase in enrollment numbers at local colleges. Its funny but when the Trib reported on this year’s public school enrollment they trumpeted a growth in public school students when there was really a small decrease. But this graphic does seem to show that there has been another increase in enrollment in our three Duluth colleges up to 20,326. If the graphic is right then last year’s enrollment for UMD, LSC and Scholastica was 20,052. Granted this is only an increase of 274 students but the headline is sure a lot more restrained than the one about the public school enrollment: “Area colleges show little change in student numbers.” The Trib could honestly written a headline more like: “Despite tough economy area colleges see enrollment growth.”

Its not clear to me from the story or the graphic if all the students listed are students living in Duluth or all students including disembodied online students. It would make a big difference for Duluth because higher education continues to be a major if not the major cause of growth in our area. 20,000 students. Heck that would be one in five Duluthians if they lived in the City. They may live cheap, ten to a rental, but they are pouring money into Duluth. Sure, they party on nice weekends around my neighborhood, curse them, but their spending powers Duluth.

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