`WE'RE UP' SAYS IT ALL

A change in leadership always brings uncertainty, but it is hard to tell at Southeast. The university is all smiles since the announcement that enrollment had indeed made a turnaround.

On the first day of classes, the count stood at 7,783 students, up 110 from a year ago. But the real celebration comes from the freshman class, which increased 217 students, or 15 percent, from the fall of 1994. A larger number of freshmen will typically keep numbers up at the university for several years as that class works its way through the system.

These numbers didn't just happen. Recruitment efforts were intensified as academic standards were toughened. Nearly half of the 1989 freshman class wouldn't meet today's stricter admission standards. Thousands of hours and thousands of dollars fueled the improvement.

But the strategy paid off, and that translates into good feelings all around. Officials are hoping that the university has finally turned the corner on its enrollment decline.

At last Friday's board of regents meeting, black-and-white buttons proclaiming "We're Up" were handed around and proudly worn. The university deserves this time of celebration. Then it is back to the phones, mailers and personal visits to keep building future student enrollments.