Xavier’s Enrollment Challenges

[FfldCntyFan]

Can we please drop the Central from CCSU and just call it Connecticut State University already. It sounds so bush league.

From what I've been told for a couple decades, both SCSU & CCSU believe they should be CSU and the state doesn't want to distinguish one as being ahead of the other.

 

[Duncan Idaho]

Charter Oak and CCSU should be merged.

I would argue UConn Avery Point should can sports as should Manchester CC.

You could make an argument to close WCSU if it gets an enrollment under 2,000 undergraduates.

Overall, the state of CT does a pretty good job with its organization of higher learning. There are a few head scratchers (Charter Oak and CCSU being separate institutions), but overall a solid job.

Avery Point athletics is self-funding. Through private donations which also can be made from the foundation app. and rentals from the pool {local high schools' swimming) and gym for things like volleyball tournaments and other facility rentals. etc. AD can't allocate to one and not the others.

 

[CCSU97]

From what I've been told for a couple decades, both SCSU & CCSU believe they should be CSU and the state doesn't want to distinguish one as being ahead of the other.

Central is and always will be the "flagship' of the CSU. It was established in 1849 (older than UConn) at New Britain. Willimantic and New Haven, and Danbury were all once 3-year units of the old Bachelors-granting Teachers College of Connecticut. The issue isn't among the campuses as much as you think, especially when the leadership was in New Britain co-located on the CCSU campus. The old CSU System was always run out of CCSU's Main Administrative building before moving to Hartford.

The biggest challenge has aways been THE STATE OF CONNECTICUT and UConn. Gov. Malloy created the dysfunction Board of Regents which merges the old CSU Board of Trustees with the Communicty College System. UConn alumni/supporters in the General Assembly don't want a competing university system because it would put a portion of their State funding at risk. Not to mention that local officials (Danbury) don't want to lose the campus and private universities like Hartford, Bridgeport, New Haven, Sacred Heart, Quinnipiac also lobby through local leaders to minimize CSU investment as their own growth in enrollment is an alternative to CSU campuses.

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The State and UConn have held CCSU back at every opportunity. CCSU headcount over time:

1975 - 13,471
1985 - 13,368
1995 - 11,752
2005 - 12,315
2015 - 12,086
2025 - 11,265

Now go look at the trends at UConn, Quinnipiac, Sacred Heart and see their growth. Simple fact is the State refuses to invest in Central and over the decades everyone else was able to grow. The State put all their eggs in one basket (UConn) and have let the CSU system fall behind everyone.

*** In 1990, UConn's total headcount was 18K, by 2020 it had grown to 24K

CCSU was literally the 6th public teacher's college established in the entire United States. Connecticut was once an innovative leader in higher education.