The University of Wisconsin-River Falls recorded its highest enrollment ever for the third consecutive semester this fall, with a student body now totaling more than 6,100 students.

The freshman class of nearly 1,300 was also the largest ever recorded at the university. The 2 percent increase in the number of students mirrors an ongoing trend of the last 10 years, eight of which have seen a record-high enrollment at UW-River Falls.

"The growth isn't sudden," said Alan Tuchtenhagen, the executive director of enrollment services at UW-River Falls. "We've been growing incrementally over the years. This is a huge growth area in Wisconsin."

UW-River Falls is located in the St. Croix valley — less than 40 miles from Minnesota's Twin Cities — which saw a population growth of 15,000 in 2005, making it the fastest growing county in Wisconsin. In addition, U.S. Census Bureau numbers indicate that it is the 37th fastest growing county in the United States.

"Those demographics play a role [in the enrollment numbers]," Tuchtenhagen said. "We've planned to have slow, modest growth."

In order to accommodate more students in housing, an expansion of the George R. Field South Fork Suites has been proposed and will be taken up by the Wisconsin Legislature in January 2007.

Campus growth has been accompanied by academic growth, according to Mark Kinders, director of public affairs at UW-RF.

"We've been doing a better job of getting information out about our academic programs," he said. "Our School of Business and Economics, which was started eight years ago, was upgraded to a college three years ago, and that's been a big draw."

Kinders added the university's college of education and professional studies has attracted a number of additional students as well.

The university is starting a number of academic programs to accommodate the growth, including new certificate and graduate programs, as well as distance-learning classes, which allow for teaching at other locations.

"The figure we're looking to grow to is 7,500 as a starting point if we can get the resources from the state," Kinders added.

UW-RF was founded in 1874 and is one of the 13 public four-year universities in the state.