Northern Illinois University in DeKalb released it's long awaited enrollment numbers today, and they are not good. In a report published on Wednesday, the student enrollment numbers have fallen drastically, to the tune of 5.5%.

The Daily Chronicle Newspaper is reporting that there are 1,115 fewer students enrolled at NIU than at in Fall of 2015.  This puts the student population at 19,015. The fewest the school has seen in a long time

2016 NIU Enrollment Numbers

  • Undergraduate enrollment: 14,079 (a loss of 6.2 % from 2015)
  • Graduate enrollment 4,672 (a loss of 3.7 % from 2015)

NIU President Doug Baker said

Certainly we continue to face challenges that all Illinois higher education institutions confront, most notably Illinois’ continued population decline and the state’s continued and persistent status as the nation’s second-largest exporter of high school students to other states for higher education.

 

This is the first time in my recollection that enrollment has dropped below 20,000 in recent memory.

Low enrollment will have a negative impact on landlords, and business owners along with a substantial loss of sales tax dollars generated by students in and around the DeKalb area.

 

.

 

 

 

More From Rockford's New Country Q98.5