Standing before students, faculty, a pep band, and anyone else who would listen, WCU Chancellor David Belcher announced that this fall WCU would be home to 10,106 students, five percent more than last years 9,608.
During his speech, Belcher also said WCUs freshmen retention rate, or the number of students who are returning to Western for their Sophomore year was higher than the state average with nearly 79% of last years freshmen returning to campus this school year.
With the increase in students comes an increase in funding, which Belcher touched on during his speech. By breaking the 10,00 student mark, WCU becomes eligible for more funding from the state, however nothing is guaranteed.
In a statement for The Western Carolina Journalist, the chancellor explained that the state government looks at enrollment over the full year before deciding which schools get how much additional funding next year, if any at all.
When asked if additional funding would prevent more program cuts or tuition increases, Belcher said there was no way to know, but did mention UNC President Thomas Ross currently has no intention of raising tuition again for the 2013-2014 school years.
