Published: Saturday, September 20, 2008 in The Whitworthian.

This year’s freshman class is the largest in Whitworth’s history.

There are 547 freshmen this year, up from 533 last year, said Fred Pfursich, dean of enrollment services.

The university also enrolled more than 80 transfer students — 14.6 percent of the overall new student enrollment.

“Typically, 15 percent of new students each year are transfers,” Pfursich said.

The male-to-female ratio increased from 45-55 percent last year to 47-53 percent this year, he said.

All these numbers equate to roughly a 2.5 percent overall growth in the number of full-time day students — a bit over the university’s stated goal of 2 percent growth each year, according to the 2005-2010 strategic plan.

Whitworth’s ethnic diversity has also risen with the arrival of the new class. Sixteen percent of the new students describe themselves as non-white, compared to 14 percent last year, Pfursich said.

The average incoming GPA of 3.7 is also a new high for Whitworth, Pfursich said.

Current students have noticed the impact of the large freshman class.

“I love them,” junior Richie Ressel said. “It’s cool they wanted to come here, but it’s too bad there’s not enough space for them.”

The freshmen themselves seem to be taking it in stride.
“I just really like it here,” freshman Erick Huntley said. “And I love the Ultimate Frisbee.”

Pfursich said he is optimistic despite the space challenges.

Looking to the future, Pfursich said in order to stay within the university’s goal of two percent growth, the admissions staff is looking to enroll a smaller class next year.