News

Northeastern Oklahoma A&M College (NEO) is celebrating its strong performance following a report from the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education on enrollment growth. The report shows that over a ten-year period from 2007-08 to 2016-17, NEO has shown an overall increase of 13.9% in full-time equivalent enrollment, which measures both full and part-time student hours. “NEO’s FTE growth during the past decade confirms our vision to become a national leader in two-year college education is paying dividends,” said NEO President Dr. Hale during his annual State of the College Address. “Our faculty and staff continue to provide exceptional education opportunities for our students and that really explains why NEO has produced the top growth of any rural school in the state of Oklahoma.” While large institutions like Oklahoma State University and the University of Oklahoma marked growth of around twelve percent, only four community college institutions posted FTE growth, with NEO ranking second only to OSU-OKC. “Most of the institutions that showed growth were in major metropolitan centers,” added Hale. “You would expect Norman, Stillwater, and Oklahoma City to post growth as their populations grow, but I am very proud of the fact that we are attracting students from all over Oklahoma, the nation, and the world to Miami, Oklahoma.” While the overall trend showed the strongest enrollment growth during 2011, 2012, and 2013, when state appropriations were about 30% higher than current levels, NEO has been able to maintain enrollment by continuing to provide quality instruction and robust student support.

NEO Assistant Vice President for Academic Affairs Dustin Grover has been tasked with the goal of increasing student retention and graduation rates and noted that the key to continuing enrollment growth is keeping students motivated. “Our FTE enrollment grows when we can keep students on their educational path,” he noted. “When students get discouraged or they skip classes and fall behind, we all lose. It’s important that we identify students who might be at risk and give them the support they need to be successful.” NEO will soon celebrate its centennial and administration is confident the College will continue to innovate around student success. For more information on the Regents’ Ten-Year FTE report or to learn more about NEO, contact Jordan Adams at Jordan.m.adams@neo.edu.