Colwell declined to elaborate on the projected depth of the decline. He said administrators should have a clearer picture of enrollment expectations by early July.

For the fall 2015 semester, enrollment was down by about 4 percent, or 697 students. The enrollment declined from 17,989 students in fall 2014 to 17,292 in fall 2015. This past year, administrators anticipated that drop in enrollment to result in $5.2 million in lost revenue for the university.

Colwell said the university is constantly in talks about ways to bolster enrollment, such as the most effective way to target scholarship funds. “This keeps us up late at night trying to figure that out,” he said.

Because SIU is such a huge economic engine in Southern Illinois, and Carbondale particularly, the number of students expected in the fall is a closely watched and highly anticipated figure for area political and business leaders.

Carbondale Mayor Mike Henry said he believes that SIU President Randy Dunn, Colwell and their teams have done an excellent job of preserving the university’s core, and that first-time and returning students will find the school just as strong in the fall as it’s always been.