Northwestern Oklahoma State University followed the trend of most of the state’s colleges and universities with a slightly smaller enrollment for the spring semester.

A total of 1,818 students enrolled in spring classes, which is 39 students or 2.1 percent fewer than last year. Most public community colleges and universities in the state system are reporting smaller enrollments.

At the main campus in Alva, enrollment stayed nearly the same with 1,155 students enrolled, compared with 1,167 a year ago.

Enrollment at the Enid location increased by three students to 257, while enrollment at the Woodward site is 218, a drop of 34 students.

Northwestern’s outreach sites, including The University Center of Ponca City, reported enrollment of 121 students. As for online courses, 826 students enrolled in at least one online course.

Dr. Janet Cunningham, president of Northwestern, said various initiatives in recruiting and retention could lead to rebounding enrollment numbers.

 “We saw increases in our fall to spring retention rates which means more students are experiencing academic success and are positive about their choice to attend Northwestern,” she said. “Our Spring Showcase event also attracted a record number of potential new students.”

The number of freshmen enrolled at the university is nearly 6 percent higher than a year ago.