Georgia Southwestern State sees higher spring enrollment

AMERICUS, Ga. (WALB) - Americus is a town that has a lot going for it – charming downtown, historic homes, and now – a university that’s growing in popularity. Enrollment at Georgia Southwestern State University (GSW) is up.

GSW’s goal is to first recruit, then retain. The current numbers for this spring are up by 100 undergrad students.

“We are up slightly which is really impressive given we were down a bit the fall semester. We’ve had more new students than we had last spring, and our retention of our large freshman class is up this spring,” Dr. Gaye Hayes, assistant vice president for Enrollment Management said.

Out of 2,775 students on campus, there has been an increase specifically with the freshman undergrad class enrolled for the spring semester.

“There are a lot of great programs on campus to assist students. We are very engaged in with our student body. For new students, our recruiting staff is now able to get back into high school classrooms. So, we are seeing more students engaged in the college admission process than we’ve had,” said Hayes.

One of the aspects that helps increase their enrollment is the campus engagement they have now, versus during the pandemic times. GSW has since returned to normal, and students are excited.

“Having people that are there for you, I mean it’s always one of the most important things to me. Personally, that’s how I succeed is because of other people. I’ve kind of recognized that doing stuff on my own doesn’t get me far. So having those support system helps me out a ton,” Mo Wilson, a freshman student at GSW, said.

Georgia Southwestern is working to provide students with the tools they need to be successful. And with more students enrolled this spring.

Academic resources, financial assistance and an engaged campus are just a few examples of the ways GSW Hurricanes can thrive.

The Canes Central building is one of the newly renovated projects that give students easier access to resources.

It’s just one way to improve campus engagement.

“Here everything is all in one building, and so we have student accounts, financial aid, and our canes card fixed. And it’s a really big help because when I first started all of these resources was spread across campus,” Carrington Price, a senior student at GSW, said.

One student often describes GSW as a cliche phrase, but for him, it still stands true.

“So I always kind of tell people that it’s a really close net. It’s really like a family, a lot of people say it a lot and it gets kind of cliche, but you really feel that when you are here,” Wilson said.

Price said she has seen the changes over the years. She offers one piece of advice for students.

“For me when I first joined, I wasn’t really involved on campus, and I kind of did wonder was college was for me. But once I got involved, I just did it, just go out and do it. You’ll meet amazing people and connections, and it will definitely feel more than worth it,” said Price.

GSW says they are also providing more leadership opportunities for students to engage in.

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