Significant Increase in Enrollment for Fall Semester

Illinois Central College (ICC) is thrilled to announce an increase in student enrollment for the fall 2024 semester. As of August 19, the first day of classes, 8,008 students have joined the ICC community—a 5.1% increase from last fall. We’ve also seen a 3.8% jump in credit hours, with students enrolling in 2,416 more hours than last year.

Enrollment has experienced growth across all student populations, including a 10% increase in students of color. The growth in the number of students of color represent the largest increase in enrollment.

New programs introduced this fall to meet the needs of local businesses are partially responsible for the increase in enrollment. ICC worked with employers in the region to identify gaps in the workforce and created construction management, cybersecurity, and artificial intelligence programs to help individuals earn the credentials they need to fill these jobs. ICC also significantly increased outreach efforts to community-based organizations.

We are excited to welcome so many new students to ICC, and we look forward to supporting them throughout their educational journeys. Our focus is the success of our students whether they plan to transfer to a university or earn a credential with labor market value. This upward trend in enrollment is encouraging and indicates the work we have done over the last several years to remove barriers to student engagement, completion, transfer, and employment is paying off.

Dr. Sheila Quirk-Bailey, ICC President

Official enrollment numbers will be shared by the Illinois Community College Board in early September.