For the fifth year in a row, Morgan State University will break an enrollment record – this time surpassing 11,000 students for the first time.
Morgan State President David Wilson announced on Thursday that he expects at least 11,200 students will enroll for the fall semester – the most in university history. He said they’ll come from 45 states and about 70 countries.
By contrast, Morgan State had 10,739 students enrolled in the fall of 2024, a 9.4 percent increase over figures for the fall of 2023. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, Morgan State’s 10-year strategic plan projected that it wouldn’t reach 10,000 students until 2030.
“We have just eclipsed over 30,000 applications, and we anticipate yet another record class,” Wilson said. “We’re at capacity.”
Wilson talked about enrollment numbers during a ribbon-cutting ceremony for The Enolia, a $58 million, 151-unit, 473-bed student housing development at 4529 Harford Road, less than a mile from the Morgan State campus at 1700 E. Cold Spring Lane.
The five-story building is named after Enolia Pettigen McMillan, the first female president of the NAACP and the first female chair of Morgan State’s Board of Regents. It’s the first new privately built off-campus housing development to serve Morgan State students in 20 years and will be occupied entirely by Morgan State students.
The developer and owner is MCB Real Estate. Morgan State is leasing the entire building from MCB and then assigning the bedrooms to students as part of its Residential Life program. Alexander Design Studio is the architect. Greystar will manage the building.
The one-, two- and four-bedroom apartments come partly furnished, with a bed and desk for every resident. Each unit contains a kitchen, living room and washer and dryer, and there is a private bathroom for every bed. Amenities include a fitness center, yoga studio, computer lab, game room, a variety of lounges and an outdoor courtyard. There are 153 off-street parking spaces, electric vehicle charging stations, an indoor storage area for bikes and shuttle service to campus.
Morgan State’s projected enrollment figures are up due in part to an increase in the number of students that will be new to campus this fall – either freshmen or transfer students – and also due to gains in the percentage of existing students who are retained and in the number of graduate students.
According to Larry Jones, Morgan State’s Assistant Vice President for Public Relations and Strategic Communications, about 2,800 of the 11,200 students will be new to campus this fall. Jones noted that the 11,200 figure is a “low estimate” for total enrollment.
Jones said there are numerous reasons for the increase in enrollment, including new degree programs, new facilities and a desire by students to attend one of the country’s Historically Black Colleges or Universities, HBCUs for short. He said Morgan is also benefitting from more “brand recognition,” as word about the university and its offerings spreads.
“More and more people are learning about Morgan State University,” he said. “And when they visit, they want to attend.”
Jones said Morgan State provides housing for about 2,300 students on campus and 2,900 students off campus. In recent years, it has opened new residences on campus, including Thurgood Marshall Hall and Legacy Hall, and has more housing under construction or renovation.
Demand for housing was so strong in 2023 that Morgan State leased rooms for students at the Lord Baltimore Hotel in downtown Baltimore. It’s not leasing any hotel rooms this year, but it does have off-campus housing in both Baltimore City and Baltimore County. Options include the Morgan View and Marble Hall Gardens properties near Morgan State’s campus; the HH Midtown apartments in Mount Vernon, and two properties in Towson, Altus Towson Row and the Towson Place Apartments.
Most of The Enolia’s inaugural tenants are expected to move in around the third week of August. Classes start on Aug. 25.
