Mike McFeely’s Q&A with President Downs
In wide-ranging interview with Forum columnist Mike McFeely, new MSUM leader confident about growing enrollment and doesn’t flat-out say ‘no’ to adding hockey.
MOORHEAD — Minnesota State University Moorhead has shed more than half of its enrollment since reaching a record high of 9,151 in 1990. The school recorded 4,379 undergraduate and graduate students enrolled last fall, continuing a downward trend. It’s a narrative that’s engulfed news about the school in recent years.
The school’s new president, Tim Downs, accurately points out almost every school in the Upper Midwest is facing enrollment challenges for various reasons. Cost, changing demographics, political narratives that diminish the value of a college degree. They all play a role.
It’s up to Downs to figure out a way to stop and reverse the slide. He took over as MSUM’s president last July after the retirement of Anne Blackhurst, being officially inaugurated in October. Downs sounds positive that MSUM can again grow enrollment.
“We’re actually in a better position than a lot of places,” Downs said.
Read the full interview: McFeely: In Q&A, MSUM President Tim Downs says, ‘We’re actually in a better position than a lot of places’ (The Forum, March 20, 2024)