Last Updated on August 26, 2024 10:48 am
BANNER ELK, N.C.—With more than 900 students enrolled for the Fall 2024 semester, Lees-McRae College has seen a year of record growth and retention and boasts the most students on campus since 2005.
The college’s student body has increased by nearly 100 students since the start of the 2023–24 academic year, with impressive growth across the college’s main campus and online and distance learning programs. This growth reflects both improved enrollment numbers and an improved retention rate, which has increased to 69% this year, up from 62% in the 2023–24 year. This increase reflects more students returning between their first and second years and speaks to an overall improvement in student satisfaction.
As the college continues to grow, so too does it continue to strengthen the student experience through improved campus living and dining experiences, robust student life activities, and exceptional academic facilities, faculty, and resources.
“With the newly renovated Historic Commons, and the increased enrollment and retention numbers, Lees-McRae College is able to offer an improved college experience to more students than ever before,” President Lee King said. “We have elevated the residence life experience with top-of-the-line campus living facilities in Tennessee and Virginia Halls, expanded our dining services on South Campus and in the Pinnacle Room, and improved campus transportation through our new MontiBUS shuttle system. In a time of great change and upheaval in higher education, Lees-McRae is thriving because we are focused on being distinctive and investing in our student experience.”
Explore some fast facts about the 2024–25 student body:
- 56% of undergraduate students are from North Carolina.
- 55% of main campus students are athletes.
- 24 countries are represented among international students.
- 17% increase in online undergraduate and graduate programs over the year prior.
- 176 undergraduate students are in the Honors Program.
