West Chester U. looking for space to grow

West Chester University is in the early stages of scouting new sites to establish campuses and accommodate growing enrollment.

"If we're really going to be able to accommodate students who want a West Chester education, we're going to have to do it some place other than here," said Greg R. Weisenstein, 68, who will retire March 31 after seven years at the helm of the largest university in the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education. "We're landlocked, and there's only so many students our community can absorb."

He declined to list locations being considered, but noted they are likely nto be ear Philadelphia and in areas where the university draws a lot of applicants.

West Chester's main campus sets on 406 acres, and the university has three off-site locations, a graduate center in West Chester, a nursing center in Exton, and programs at the state system's center city Philadelphia site.

The 16,611 student university saw a 3.2 percent increase in students last year and nearly a 30 percent jump since 2004. It's one of only three state universities out of 14 in the system that saw growth last year. The other schools had declines, and the system overall has been losing students for the last several years.

Much of the enrollment growth occurred during Weisenstein's tenure. The university feted him on Monday and named a street after him.

Weisenstein said he expects another enrollment jump in Fall 2016, possibly nearing 17,000. About 1,500 of the students never set foot on the main campus, he said. They either take classes at the other sites or online, he said.

He emphasized that the university is a long way from making any decisions, and it's unclear what impact his departure will have.

Christopher M. Fiorentino, vice president for external operations, will step in as interim president while the university searches for a new leader.

"We have to work with everybody else to make sure that it's the right place," he said, "that transportation works well and that we're not butting up against other universities that can provide the same service at the same price."

In June, West Chester announced a "collaboration" with Cheyney, an historically black university that is also part of the state system and only six miles away. Cheyney has been bleeding enrollment and struggling financially.

At that time, a West Chester spokeswoman noted Cheyney's 275 acres of rolling farmland in Delaware and Chester counties. But Weisenstein last week dismissed the possibility of locating a building or satellite campus on Cheyney property.

"There are a lot of politics around that," he said.

Weisenstein said he's proud of West Chester's growth and popularity. The university accepted 59 percent of its applicants for last fall, and of those, nearly a third enrolled. Incoming freshmen had an average GPA of 3.6.

The university a few months ago began advertising at Union Station in Washington D.C. and Penn Station in New York City.

"We want to broaden the reputation of the university," he said. "That has some major benefits not only in recruiting students but also in helping our graduates. As you elevate the image . . . you help people get jobs."

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