Hood College in Frederick has experienced a striking turnaround since it went coeducational in 2003.
Enrollment is up 55 percent to 2,400 students, and more than 300 freshmen will enroll this fall.
“So far, so good,” college spokesman Dave Diehl said. “Integrating men has been pretty close to ideal.”
It?s a far cry from 2001, when freshman enrollment had dropped to 113 students, causing budget and staff cuts.
“There is absolutely a different feel” since the college went coed, Diehl said. “Most people would say there is an added vibrancy.”
Four years after going coed, Hood is 32 percent male, said President Ronald Volpe, who added that the school hasn?t had trouble attracting men.
“I didn?t even think of it as a problem [when considering Hood],” said male student Faizal Johnson, 19, a junior. “Girls are still the majority, but you don?t see any tension.”
Female student Jovanni Mahonez, 22, a senior, said she thinks the admission of male students has enhanced the school.
But she?s happy that activities on campus are rooted in the college?s all-female history, citing an annual performance of Handel?s “Messiah” with a U.S. Naval Academy chorus.
“We keep the traditions of when [Hood] was still all female, but we adapt and grow,” she said.
For the second consecutive year, the college has been forced to lease apartments off campus to accommodate students. That forced the Board of Trustees to recently approve a capital plan that includes two new residence halls.
“We think we?re probably close to where we need to be with overall enrollment,” Diehl said.
