Eighteen months, 5,000 students: Idaho colleges and universities face a deep enrollment decline
June 24, 2021 | Idaho
Idaho’s public colleges and universities have lost more than 5,000 students since the pandemic.
It’s not worst-case scenario stuff. The 18-month dropoff was 8.7%, but administrators feared a 20% decrease.
By placing a premium on face-to-face learning — in the midst of a public health crisis — the Idaho schools served those students who were determined to start or continue college. Students who were willing to travel across state lines for an in-person classroom experience. Students who wouldn’t, or couldn’t, put their education on hold.
The story of Idaho higher education in 2020-21 is one of adaptation.
Boise State University administrators scrambled to move classes from lecture halls to the stands at ExtraMile Arena. Professors adjusted to move classes to an online platform, including hands-on labs that didn’t translate easily to the Zoom zone. Students adjusted to face masks, socially distanced dorms and cafeterias and frequent COVID tests — and some said they got into the habit of sleeping in, clicking on their laptops and quickly logging into an online class while wearing pajamas…
(Excerpts from Idahoednews)
