VALLEY CITY, N.D. (VCSU) – Valley City State University (VCSU) has, for the fourth time in school history, a freshman class of more than 200 students.

Enrollment information was released by the Office of the Registrar on Wednesday, September 2st. Overall enrollment at the university is 1,658 with 205 freshmen. Also included are upper-class students, students pursuing graduate degrees and dual credit students. For the fourth year in a row, the student body has eclipsed 1,650, and there are almost 300 freshmen and transfer students, combined, enrolled this fall.

“One of the areas we have seen positive momentum is the number of students choosing to live in our residence halls. We are very pleased with a 22% increase of students living on campus this semester,” VCSU President Alan LaFave said. “This positive occupancy rate reflects an increase in our freshman class size, along with more interest from our returning students to be an active part of our university community.”

VCSU has seen enrollment grow by 21% in the past decade. In that time frame, multiple programs and partnerships have helped ensure VCSU continues to meet student and community needs. This includes launching the new Master of Science degree in Business Information Systems and continued collaboration with North Dakota State University to offer a dual degree in Elementary Education. VCSU continues to assist, educate, and retain teachers through the Rural School Partner Benefit Program and the innovative substitute teaching component for students admitted to the VCSU School of Education. This week VCSU also received a $600,000 grant from the North Dakota Department of Public Instruction that creates additional scholarship opportunities to address the teacher shortage in North Dakota.

“There are so many great things happening on our campus. Our full-time student population has increased from last year. It’s also important to note that our retention rates increased from last fall, indicating strong student satisfaction,” LaFave said. “You can feel the energy of full-time, on-campus students every day. We are fortunate to have so many wonderful students actively engaged on campus and in our community.”