HAYS, Kan. -- Fort Hays State University set a new record with an enrollment of 11,308 on the official 20th-day of the fall 2009 semester, but registrations continued and an even higher all-time enrollment had been established by the end of the semester.

The 20th-day enrollment in fall 2009 of 11,308 was an increase of 1,201 students, or 11.9 percent, from the 20th-day enrollment in fall 2008 of 10,107 students. The supplemental enrollment of another 229 students after the 20th day brought the final fall 2009 enrollment to 11,537.

The Kansas Board of Regents uses the 20th day as a baseline so the six state universities can accurately track enrollment swings from year to year. It also provides an apples-to-apples comparison of enrollments from university to university.

FHSU has been far and away the fastest growing university in the Regents system for the past several years. Over the most recent five-year period for which complete numbers are available -- from fall 2003 to fall 2008 -- FHSU's enrollment grew 37.1 percent. The second highest growth rate during that period was 5.9 percent at Pittsburg State University.

"With the growth of the Virtual College over the past decade, the 20th-day headcount is no longer a completely accurate gauge of actual enrollment at FHSU," Dr. Edward H. Hammond, FHSU president, said in announcing the 11,537 final enrollment. "The Virtual College offers some 'asynchronous' courses, which are geared toward students whose jobs or family responsibilities make attendance in traditional classes difficult. These distance education courses allow students to start at various times, which means enrollment continues to grow throughout the semester at FHSU appreciably more than it does at universities that offer the bulk of their coursework in a traditional setting."

Total headcount enrollment in the Virtual College on the 20th day of the fall 2009 semester was 6,965, an increase of 1,161 students, or 20.0 percent, from the 20th day enrollment of 5,804 in fall 2008. By the end of the fall 2009 semester, Virtual College enrollment had increased by 196 students to a total of 7,161.

There was also additional growth in on-campus enrollment. The on-campus headcount on the 20th day in fall 2009 was 4,343, an increase of 40 students, or 0.9 percent, from the 20th-day fall 2008 enrollment of 4,303. By the end of the fall 2009 semester, on-campus enrollment had increased by 73 students to a total of 4,376.

FHSU also set a record for the total number of credit hours -- 102,737 -- on the 20th day of the fall 2009 semester. Credit hours are the total number of hours for all the students who are enrolled. By the end of the semester, the credit hours had increased by 2,389 to a new record of 105,126.

"With a 12-percent reduction in our state general fund budget from a year ago, we identified growth as one of the components in our four-part budget strategy, along with implementation of efficiencies in our operations, an increase in tuition, and budget reductions within individual offices and academic departments," the president said. "It was imperative that we continue to grow and find new efficiencies so that we can hold down tuition increases and operational budget cuts. The additional enrollment over the remainder of the fall semester makes our growth strategy even more successful."

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