Increase in Enrollment Exceeds Housing Capacity

Published: July 29, 2015 | Author: Jessica Young | Read Time: 2 minutes

Southern Utah University will welcome its largest freshmen class in Fall 2015. The growth has resulted in more qualified students entering the University and has led a crunch on housing.

Early admissions decisions filled on-campus housing quickly and off-campus offerings are filling up faster than anticipated. Community members have reached out to the University to help students find housing.

SUU President Scott Wyatt said, "This community, since the founding of the University, has proved that in times of need, members will step forward to help.”

University Housing director, Chris Ralphs, said that efforts are being made to ensure each SUU student has the necessary resources to succeed academically, which includes a safe and comfortable home. One effort that has been made is contacting students that have secured private bedrooms in SUU’s on-campus housing facilities and asking if they will open their room to another roommate. Many students have volunteered to take on an additional roommate.

Jared Tippets, vice president for Student Affairs, said, “We are anticipating an overall growth between 8-9 percent, this fall, and continued growth the next several years. With these exciting changes comes a challenge; students are struggling to find housing for this upcoming semester.”

Tippets went on to say that SUU will begin immediately exploring the possibility of adding more housing on campus but also emphasized that we will still need more apartments in the community to meet the demand in future years.

SUU’s growth supports Utah’s 66 by 2020 initiative, which calls for two-thirds of all Utah adults to hold either a college degree or technical certification by the year 2020. According to the Governor’s Education plan, higher levels of education will expand Utah’s economy and prepare students for the demands of the job market.

Brandon Wright, executive director of recruitment, said, “Between marketing, recruitment and admissions processing, everyone has been working hard and we think this increase in enrollment is a big win for the University, the community and the students.”

For the first time, multiple departments partnered to set objectives, layout strategy and tactics. Ellen Treanor, executive director of marketing, said, “SUU has set goals increasing both the quality and the quantity of incoming freshman.”

She said it was the contribution of multiple departments that made the difference.

A current list of available off-campus housing can be found on the Housing website. Community members are invited to contact Chris Ralphs at housing@suu.edu with openings near campus available for rent beginning August 24 that you would like added to the list.

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