Ohio public colleges post enrollment increases

CLEVELAND (AP) — Preliminary fall head count numbers filed with the state show enrollment gains for many public universities and community colleges throughout Ohio.

Central State University east of Dayton reports its student body is 12.2 percent larger than last year. Kent State University says enrollment is up 8.8 percent, and the Metro Campus of Cuyahoga Community College in Cleveland reports it has almost 40 percent more students than in the fall of 2008.

Pat Cirillo, a statistician for the Northeast Ohio Council on Higher Education, says the recession has made public higher education more appealing.

She says private colleges also have made gains overall, though some have had to offer more financial aid while struggling to fill their classes.