Local NewsMarch 19, 2025

LCSC sees its largest spring bump in school history; UI posts its biggest spring head count ever

Lewiston Tribune
Lewis-Clark State College students cheer on their school's basketball team during a game in February.
Lewis-Clark State College students cheer on their school's basketball team during a game in February.August Frank/Lewiston Tribune
Falling snow clings to trees and the ground around pathways of the University of Idaho Administration Building lawn Tuesday as students walk to classes in Moscow.
Falling snow clings to trees and the ground around pathways of the University of Idaho Administration Building lawn Tuesday as students walk to classes in Moscow.Liesbeth Powers/Moscow-Pullman Daily News
Cynthia Pemberton
Cynthia Pemberton

Students flocked to Lewis-Clark State College and the University of Idaho when the spring semester got started in January.

The two schools announced their spring enrollment figures Tuesday, and both set records. LCSC saw its largest percentage increase in school history and UI had its largest spring head count in school history.

Washington State University, the region’s other four-year school, hasn’t announced its spring enrollment figures yet.

LCSC goes up 11.2% compared to last spring

Lewis-Clark State saw a significant jump in enrollment at the start of the spring semester, with its overall headcount jumping 11.2% compared to the spring of 2024.

The Lewiston school’s overall enrollment was 3,100 at the start of the spring semester in January, according to a news release distributed Tuesday. That is 313 more than last year at this time.

The 11.2% increase is a school record for a spring semester.

The uptick included an 8.2% jump in full-time students, an 11.7% increase in Idaho residents and a 10.5% bump in nonresidents.

Divisions that saw the most growth included Business & Computer Science (up 19.3%), Nursing & Health Sciences (17.5%) and Technical & Industrial (12.4%). The Nursing & Health Sciences program went up 98 students to 658.

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“Small rural colleges across the nation are facing sharp enrollment declines, but not here,” LCSC President Cynthia Pemberton said. “Our programs and academic outcomes are outstanding, and students thrive in our small-school, close-knit environment.”

UI welcomes record spring enrollment

The University of Idaho announced Tuesday that its 2025 spring enrollment is the largest in the school’s history.

Overall student enrollment is 11,886 students, which is an increase of 4.2% from spring 2024.

UI says this is the eighth consecutive semester of enrollment growth at the UI.

Undergraduate enrollment is up 4.6% from last year to 7,123 students.

Total graduate student enrollment is 1,947, up 2.4% from spring 2024. Doctoral student enrollment is 583, up 8.4% from last year.

The College of Law saw an increase of 8.7% to 449 total students.

For the fifth year in a row, UI is ranked as the top Best Value Public University in the West by U.S. News and World Report and is second in the nation behind University of North Carolina.

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