{"id":29892,"date":"2026-10-07T15:45:21","date_gmt":"2026-10-07T19:45:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/news\/?p=29892"},"modified":"2026-10-07T15:45:21","modified_gmt":"2026-10-07T19:45:21","slug":"marshall-university-reports-1-5-enrollment-increase","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/news\/2026\/10\/marshall-university-reports-1-5-enrollment-increase\/","title":{"rendered":"Marshall University reports 1.5% enrollment increase"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>Marshall University\u2019s enrollment grew 1.5% year over year, university leaders reported Wednesday during the Board of Governors\u2019 regularly scheduled meeting in Huntington.\u00a0 The number includes dual enrollment students.<\/p>\n<p>The increase is positive news considering a national trend of enrollment hurdles facing higher education institutions.<\/p>\n<p>As of today, the total census number for the university stands at 13,094, which is up 9.5% from two years ago and marks the fourth consecutive year of growth.<\/p>\n<p>During his remarks, President Brad D. Smith said the university must continue its effort to combat demographic challenges that affect higher education, while keeping true to its <a href=\"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/mission\/\">mission, vision and creed.\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe signal is clear \u2014 the enrollment cliff is upon us and will only become more challenging,\u201d Smith said. \u201cThis places a premium on our new approaches including an expanded Metro coverage area that will encompass the border states beginning next fall.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Smith also touted Marshall\u2019s High School Direct Admissions program and the Tuition Free WV and Marshall For All Debt-Free programs that help remove barriers for students and makes higher education accessible and affordable.<\/p>\n<p>As part of the board\u2019s effort to recognize faculty members for exceptional work, two faculty members were highlighted during the meeting.<\/p>\n<p>They are:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Dr. Michael Hambuchen, an associate professor in the School of Pharmacy, received a $590,000 National Institutes of Health R16 grant for his project \u201cPreclinical Evaluation of Naloxone-Dexmedetomidine Safety and Efficacy for Treating Methamphetamine-Induced Agitation in Polysubstance Intoxication.\u201d<br \/>\nHambuchen was also a co-recipient with the School of Medicine\u2019s Dr. Todd Davies, of a $10,000 state grant for their project, \u201cLofexidine in Methamphetamine-Induced Agitation and Withdrawal.\u201d<\/li>\n<li>Dr. Henning Vauth, a professor in the College of Arts and Media, served on the faculty of the Global Summer Institute of Music in Austria this summer. He gave a sold-out piano recital in Porta Westfalica, Germany, Aug. 2, 2026. Vauth also began a term on the International Society for Music Education Musicians\u2019 Health and Wellbeing Committee, and co-authored a chapter contracted for The Oxford Handbook of Piano Pedagogy.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Additionally, the board celebrated hundreds of faculty and staff achievements across the institution from federal funding awards to international recognition and collaborative partnerships. A list of recent accomplishments is <a href=\"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/board\/files\/October-7-2026-Board-of-Governors-Regular-Meeting_Agenda.pdf#page=20\">here.<\/a><\/p>\n<p>The board heard committee reports from the Academic and Student Affairs Committee, Finance, Audit and Facilities Planning Committee and the Athletic Committee. There were no action items.<\/p>\n<p>Chairwoman Kathy Eddy also recognized outgoing board member Bishop Samuel Moore for his service.<\/p>\n<p>Dec. 2, 2026, is the board\u2019s next scheduled meeting.<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Marshall University\u2019s enrollment grew 1.5% year over year, university leaders reported Wednesday during the Board of Governors\u2019 regularly scheduled meeting in Huntington.\u00a0 The number includes dual enrollment students. The increase is positive news considering a national trend of enrollment hurdles facing higher education institutions. As of today, the total census number for the university stands [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":239,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[26],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-29892","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news-releases"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29892","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/239"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=29892"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29892\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":29899,"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29892\/revisions\/29899"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=29892"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=29892"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=29892"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}