LVN, I agree. Until "official" Spring enrollment figures are in after classes start, HA really has nothing to report.  These figures were given to department heads this week as "estimate" according to our administration with dire warnings about financial impact.  We also do not know how the Katrina $$ will offset some of these tuition losses since details are not yet available (who is eligible, how much, etc). PRCC did suffer a greater loss % wise (over 1000 students) as did MDJC in Fall, haven't heard about Spring yet.  They do "head counts" later than universities, as you all most likely know.  Most interesting about USM is that we were already down in fall Pre-Katrina, as has already been noted elsewhere, and this dramatic decrease was most likely NOT expected, USM thought the worst was behind us with fall decline after Katrina.  I suspect (just opinion, no empirical evidence here) that students are finding these temp high paying Katrina related jobs  luring them away from school in Hattiesburg (esp marginal students and those disillusioned with USM anyway) as well as the fed up students who tried to make a go at Gulf Park in Fall and simply are unwilling to go to school under the "MASH" conditions of the makeshift campus.  Then there is the SFT factor, maybe the black cloud hanging over USM is finally becoming visible to others as well as faculty and staff.  It has taken long enough.  But we will never know the weight of THAT variable since administration will always blame the decline in enrollment on Katrina and without a highly structured and expensive research study (done by outsiders), impossible to stratify.

Just my opinion, and I could be completely wrong.  Disclaimer noted.