BGSU students move-in as university sees pre-pandemic enrollment numbers

BOWLING GREEN, Ohio (WTVG) - What has been a relatively quiet campus over the summer is about to get a whole lot louder as freshman and transfer students began moving into their residence halls on Monday for the start of a new academic year at Bowling Green State University.

Hundreds of falcons flocked to BGSU on Aug. 15 marking the start of a new academic year and a milestone in BGSU’s pandemic recovery.

“I’m feeling nervous, excited and a little bit scared,” said Katelyn Hays, a BGSU freshman.

More than 3,500 new students flooded the BGSU campus.

“I’m most excited to meet new friends and live the college experience and then to get a good degree,” said Brooklyn Olmstead, a BGSU freshman.

Olmstead is part of BGSU’s largest class of new students since the COVID-19 pandemic.

“2020 was challenging, I think, for most higher education institutions,” said Cecilia Castellano, the vice-president for enrollment management at BGSU. “You know, families made different choices, and so we saw our first-year class go down significantly from 2019.”

Numbers show enrollment is almost back to pre-pandemic levels after jumping 9% in the past year.

“We’re going to see an overall increase in our enrollment is what we’re projecting for this fall, and we continue to grow,” said BGSU President Rodney Rogers.

Castellano says the new class has one of the best collective GPAs in recent history at a 3.68.

“We are seeing really strongly academically prepared students, and so I think we’re really excited about how talented the students are coming in,” said Castellano.

These incoming falcons are leaving one nest, and settling into a new one.

“It’s exciting. It’s scary. It’s, you know, we’re to that point where she’s ready to get out in the world,” said Laura Hays, who helped move her daughter in.

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