Arkansas

Arkansas Universities See Growth This Fall as Enrollment Cliff Looms

Published

2 weeks ago

November 11, 2024

Arkansas Universities See Growth This Fall as Enrollment Cliff Looms

UA Chancellor Charles Robinson said strong recruiting pipelines helped the university surpass 33,000 in enrollment. (Michael Woods)

The state’s largest universities saw fall enrollment increase this year as each prepares for the coming enrollment cliff predicted to hit in 2026.

The University of Arkansas’ flagship campus in Fayetteville reported 33,610 students to the Arkansas Department of Higher Education for its “11th day” snapshot enrollment numbers. The number represented an increase of 4.6% and was the fourth consecutive year the university reported record enrollment.

The UA wasn’t alone as Arkansas State University in Jonesboro reported enrollment of 16,687, a 12% increase, and the University of Central Arkansas in Conway and the University of Arkansas at Little Rock each reported gains of 3.4% or better.

UA Chancellor Charles Robinson noted that 6,614 of those 33,610 enrolled were incoming freshmen, the second-highest number in the school’s history behind the 2022 class of 7,096.

“I think we built strong pipelines throughout the state of Arkansas, which is our first focus,” Robinson said. “But it didn’t just start this year. We’ve had a trend of growth in our freshman classes that have been strong for a number of years.”

Todd Shields was named chancellor at Arkansas State in 2022 and almost immediately increased the university’s efforts to market the school and recruit students. The efforts have paid off with A-State reporting 16,687 for its 11th-day snapshot.

<p>Todd Shields, chancellor of Arkansas State University</p> — Todd Shields

“That’s a huge increase,” Shields said. “We basically really started just looking at everything that we did and doubling down on what we were doing with recruitment, doubling down on what we’re doing for advertising, making sure that people knew what was happening.”

Suzanne McCray, the vice provost for enrollment at UA-Fayetteville, said all universities and colleges in the state have worked to become as “cliff resistant” as possible. Changing demographics — primarily lower birth rates in the U.S. — are expected to result in fewer college-age students beginning in 2026.

“We did enjoy this fall, climbing up to the top of the crest, and next year, it’ll be good as well,” McCray said. “And then 2026-27 is when we’re going to notice a perceptible decline. We’re trying to be cliff resistant. I think larger institutions, research universities, that can draw from a wider number of states and wider area, I think they are going to have an easier time of it.”

Suzanne McCray, vice provost for enrollment at UA-Fayetteville, said higher education institutions have worked hard to become cliff resistant by 2026, when it is expected a drop in college-aged students will cause enrollment numbers to fall. (Michael Woods)

Spread the Word

The University of Arkansas at Little Rock had the second-largest freshman class by percentage in its history. It welcomed 460 first-time freshmen, a 28.9% increase from a year ago and just shy of the 30% increase of the 2022 class. Chancellor Christina Drale said the university has tried to be creative in challenging times to bring in more students.

“We really knew that, in the current environment, when everyone is dealing with the same thing, we had to think outside the box,” Drale said. “You have to really develop all of your tools for marketing and for reaching out to new audiences.”

Drale said UA Little Rock’s success was a result of hitting its traditional recruiting areas in central Arkansas harder but also adding recruiters in newer areas such as northeast Texas and east Arkansas and the Memphis area.

Shields said marketing has been a big key to A-State’s success. He said he wasn’t aware of some of the advantages enjoyed by A-State and Jonesboro, such as the area’s booming steel industry, the low cost of living and educational opportunities that include a new veterinary school.

“If I didn’t know about it, how’s the average person in Arkansas supposed to know about it?” Shields, who came to Jonesboro from the U of A in Fayetteville, asked. “We did some testing and focus groups, and they didn’t know about it. So, it was just making sure that we let people know what a great education they can get here. And then when you look at tuition, fees, housing, meal plans and overall cost of living, we’re hard to beat. People often overlook Jonesboro.”

Fall enrollment at the UA-Fayetteville surpassed 33,000, including a record number of in-state students for the fourth consecutive year. (Michael Woods)

UA-Fayetteville, thanks to its scale, has a much wider recruiting footprint than others in the state, but Robinson said the university will always look inside the state’s borders first.

He said UA will never turn away a qualified in-state student.

The UA reported 16,519 Arkansas students among its enrollees, nearly as many as A-State’s entire student body.

“If anything, the cliff is just going to encourage us to work harder in Arkansas, because we never want to lose our primacy in Arkansas,” Robinson said.

Harder Times Ahead

McCray said the enrollment cliff will be more challenging for colleges and universities that draw from a smaller area.

The University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff reported enrollment of 2,045, a 2.4% drop from a year ago. There were positives such as a 7% increase in new student enrollment, said Moses Goldmon, the university’s vice chancellor of enrollment management.

Goldmon said UAPB was hurt by a significant drop in retention numbers. The university reorganized its recruiting division and increased its recruiting efforts in spaces traditionally receptive to UAPB.

“With chagrin, I expect the cliff to present even greater challenges, particularly with respect to recruitment and admissions,” Goldmon said. “However, I also anticipate that our restructuring and evolving strategic enrollment management approach will help us be more competitive.

“If we can regain our pre-COVID momentum, where we saw increases in persistence, retention and graduation rates for several years, we should be able to stabilize and then grow our enrollment by focusing on excellent student service and student success.”

Robinson seized on the word “retention,” saying it was as important as recruiting in the higher education world. UA-Fayetteville reported a 70% graduation rate for its most recently completed class.

“It’s not just recruiting; it is holding students, retaining them,” Robinson said. “We have, as an institution, crashed past the 70% mark in our graduation rate for the first time in our history. There’s nobody in the state with that type of percentage. Our retention rate held at 86% for the second year in a row. So we’re doing better retaining students. We’re doing better graduating students.”

Drale said she was encouraged by the increase in UA Little Rock’s incoming freshmen class. If those students stay the course, that will stabilize numbers when the cliff comes into play, she said.

UA Little Rock also reported 786 transfer students, an 18% increase from a year ago.

“When you can get a significant bump in new freshmen and new transfers, that then increases your subsequent years,” Drale said. “The class, it goes through sort of the funnel, and it increases your enrollment for returning students in sub-sequent years. With a big increase in new freshmen and new transfers, we’re pretty excited about what that will mean for us long term.”

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Arkansas

Steals, slams winning combo for Hoop Hogs against Little Rock

Published

2 hours ago

November 23, 2024

Press Room

Steals, slams winning combo for Hoop Hogs against Little Rock

Behind a fully-torqued defensive effort, the No. 20 Arkansas Razorbacks (4-1) claimed victory 79-67 over the Little Rock Trojans inside Bud Walton Arena on Friday night in Fayetteville.

Arkansas’ intensity was evident at the get-go, as head coach John Calipari’s club ripped off five steals on Little Rock’s first five possessions, good enough to hand the Hoop Hogs a quick 11-0 advantage.

That pressure never relented in the first half, as the Razorbacks had eight steals and nine forced turnovers at the under-8 mark, and 10 steals and 11 forced turnovers by halftime.

“That first five or six minutes of the game we were a deer in headlights,” Little Rock head coach Darrell Walker, a former Razorback, said postgame. “We were terrified for no reason. We turned the ball over. Now, they got 19 turnovers. We turned the ball over 19 times and they got 28 points off of that. I told my team before the game, ‘We cannot have a lot of turnovers. If you do, this team is really good in the open court. You put them in half court you’re going to have a chance to get in the game.’”

Leading the way for most hands in the cookie jar was forward Adou Thiero (six steals), though five Razorbacks recorded at least one steal and four Hogs totaled 2+ steals.

“The biggest plays were effort plays,” Calipari said of Thiero. “Those were the biggest plays he made. He had six steals — all effort steals. Just he out-worked the other guy to get the ball.”

As a result of the defensive ferocity, Arkansas pushed the pace in transition to the tune of 22 fastbreak points, 28 points off turnovers and five slams through both halves.

“From watching all the film of all the games they’ve played, I knew this was going to be an off-the-dribble game,” Walker said. “And when they shoot the ball well they can become dangerous. But they really an off-the-dribble team and a transition team right now. I’m sure Cal is still trying to figure things out. This is early in the season, just like I’m trying to figure things out with my basketball team. He’s got some key guys hurt.”

One can’t mention Arkansas’ up-and-down court explosion without further crediting Thiero, who racked up a team-high 23 points, a team-high eight rebounds, two blocks and pulled off an immaculate left-handed windmill transition dunk.

“There was a will to win,” Calipari said. “I don’t care who it’s against. When a game gets like that, that stuff was on us, and Adou making that play on the offensive rebound, again, he’s standing out how he’s playing. He’s getting it done.”

Up next, Arkansas will close its home-stand with a matchup against Maryland-Eastern Shore on Monday. That game is set to tip-off at 7 p.m. CT and will stream on SEC Network+.

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Arkansas

Arkansas basketball vs Little Rock score today: Live updates, game highlights, how to watch

Published

10 hours ago

November 22, 2024

Press Room

Arkansas basketball vs Little Rock score today: Live updates, game highlights, how to watch

FAYETTEVILLE — Arkansas basketball will welcome one of the best players in program history back to Bud Walton Arena tonight.

The No. 24 Razorbacks (3-1) will host Little Rock (3-2) Friday. The Trojans are coached by Darrell Walker, who was a consensus All-American for the Razorbacks in 1983 and is a member of the Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame, the Southwest Conference Hall of Fame and the University of Arkansas Sports Hall of Honor.

The Hogs are in the midst of a four-game homestand and are coming off a 91-72 victory over Pacific Monday. They’ve been stingy through the early portion of the season and rank 10th in the nation in KenPom’s defensive efficiency metric.

This will be just the second meeting between the two Natural State programs. Arkansas won 93-78 in 2021, and the Trojans are coming off a road victory over Tulsa in their most recent contest.

Below are live score updates, highlights and other notes from Arkansas basketball’s fifth game of the season.

Arkansas basketball vs. Little Rock score updates

This section will be updated when the game begins.

What time does Arkansas vs. Little Rock play today?

Date: Friday, Nov. 22
Time: 8 p.m. CT
Location: Fayetteville

What channel is Arkansas vs. Little Rock game on today?

TV channel: SEC Network
Streaming: FUBO (Free Trial), ESPN+

Arkansas vs. Little Rock live stream options

Arkansas vs. Little Rock will be broadcast on SEC Network. The matchup can also be streamed with a subscription to FUBO, which has the option for a free trial, and ESPN+, which includes ESPNU and all other ESPN channels.

Arkansas vs. Little Rock prediction

Arkansas 79, Little Rock 63: This game could follow a familiar theme to earlier home games, with a mid-major squad staying close thanks to 3-pointers, but Arkansas’ talent eventually wearing out the opposition. A blowout is more likely if one of Trevon Brazile or Jonas Aidoo returns to the floor for the Hogs.

Arkansas vs. Little Rock betting odds

Game lines and odds from BetMGM as of Friday morning:

Spread: Arkansas -20.5
Over/under: 143.5
Moneyline: Little Rock +1250

Arkansas basketball schedule

Record: 3-1

(Next five games)

Little Rock, Nov. 22
Maryland Eastern Shore, Nov. 25
Illinois (Kansas City), Nov. 28
at Miami, Dec. 3
UTSA, Dec. 7

Little Rock schedule

Record: 3-2

(Next five games)

at Arkansas, Nov. 22
at Illinois, Nov. 25
Maryland Eastern Shore, Nov. 27
Central Arkansas, Dec. 4
Ouachita Baptist University, Dec. 10

Arkansas basketball news

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Arkansas

Arkansas high school football second-round playoff scores, live updates (11/22/2024)

Published

18 hours ago

November 22, 2024

Press Room

Arkansas high school football second-round playoff scores, live updates (11/22/2024)

Second-round playoff games take place across the state Friday, November 22, in the Arkansas high school football postseason.

You can follow all of the AAA playoff football games and get updated scores by tracking the SBLive/SI Arkansas High School Football Scoreboard.

Arkansas (AAA) high school football playoffs: 2024 brackets, Round 2 matchups, game times

High School on SI will have in-game score updates and all of the final scores from every corner of the state. You can also search for full schedules and complete scores from all of your favorite teams.

Here’s your guide to catching all of the Round 2 Arkansas high school football playoff action on Friday night (November 22, 2024).

STATEWIDE ARKANSAS FOOTBALL SCOREBOARD

CLASS 7A SCORES

CLASS 6A SCORES

CLASS 5A SCORES

CLASS 4A SCORES

CLASS 3A SCORES

CLASS 2A SCORES

CLASS 8 MAN SCORES

2024 ARKANSAS FOOTBALL SCHEDULES: FIND YOUR TEAM

Can’t make it to your favorite team’s game but still want to watch them live? You can watch dozens of Arkansas high school football games live on the NFHS Network:

WATCH AAA GAMES LIVE ON NFHS NETWORK

Want to know how your team finished the regular season? Find out where they landed in our final computer rankings:

And don’t forget to visit the brand new Arkansas homepage on High School on SI, powered by SBLive Sports, for all the latest news, highlights, analysis, scores, photos and information on Arkansas high school sports. Follow our live game coverage and read our feature stories, breaking news, the latest recruiting news, rankings and much more.