Jackson State University enrollment: See where the school stands heading into the fall
Officials at Jackson State University believe the school is on the rise despite two years of declining enrollment.
After the May 1 student deposit deadline, Kylon Alford-Winfield, vice president of enrollment management at JSU, while not giving an exact number, said the admissions department is seeing an uptick in freshmen applications.
"That indicates that our 2024 freshmen enrollment is on trend with our 2023 numbers, suggesting room for a slight increase," Alford-Winfield said.
Jackson State had 895 freshmen for the 2023-2024 school year. But in the past two years, the university has seen a decline in enrollment — 6,906 in fall 2022 and 6,564 in the fall 2023.
To get enrollment numbers moving in an upward trajectory, new JSU President Marcus Thompson told the Clarion Ledger in January that he and JSU’s director of facilities have already started the process of seeking funds from the legislature to renovate one of the women’s residence halls, Whiteside McAllister.
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The female dormitory has been offline since 2021 due to maintenance failures and equipment that needs to be repaired. He said the roughly 600-bedspace dorm hall is anticipated to change into suite-style apartments, allowing for the accommodation of an additional 300 bed spaces.
Thompson also said that JSU is asking for funds to build a new residence hall. In addition to those requests, he said the university is renovating a space called “One University Place,” which is a mixed space that has retail on the first floor and residences upstairs. That will add another estimated beds.
For fall 2024, based on the number of freshmen expected, Alford-Winfield said enough space should be available to house all students who are requesting housing.
"Based on our current projections, we are optimistic about our residential accommodations for our incoming freshmen class," Alford-Winfield said. "Overall, we are excited for the upcoming academic year and remain committed to empowering students to achieve their fullest potential at Jackson State University."
Since 2000, JSU has had seven presidents including those who served in an interim role.
Thompson previously served as the Mississippi Institutions of Higher Learning system diversity officer and was responsible for providing leadership and consultation to develop and implement equity and diversity strategies throughout the public university system. Pastor of Mountain Ridge United Methodist Church in Brandon, he also previously served as chief of staff and assistant to the State Superintendent of Education at the Mississippi Department of Education.
Thompson took over from Elaine Hayes-Anthony, who was appointed to the interim role after former JSU President Thomas Hudson was placed on administrative leave and subsequently resigned. Hayes-Anthony was put in the position of leading Jackson State University an HBCU of around 7,000 students through a period of declining enrollment, without knowing how long she would be in the role.
Ross Reily can be reached by email at rreily@gannett.com or 601-573-2952. You can follow him on Twitter @GreenOkra1.
This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Jackson State University enrollment tells a story
