The University reported a slight increase in the number of black students who enrolled with this year's first-year class, even as many other universities reported a significant drop.
Of the 3,096 members of the Class of 2008, 288, or 9.3 percent, are black, compared to 273 of 3,101 students in 2003 (8.8 percent) and 289 of 2,999 students in 2002 (9.6 percent).
Nationwide, however, the Washington Post reported Monday that many schools, including several public flagship universities, enrolled significantly fewer black students this year than in 2003.
At the University of Michigan, which following a May 2003 Supreme Court decision continues to use race as a factor in admissions but does not award extra points to minority applicants, 350 of 5,730, or 6.1 percent, of this year's freshman students are black, compared to 410 of 5,333, or 7.7 percent, last year. According to the Post, the percentage of applications submitted by black students dropped 28 percent, from 1,868 to 1,337.
Many other universities, including Penn State University, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Ohio State University also reported significant decreases, according to the Post.
The University of Maryland also did not experience a decline. Black students account for 12.3 percent of this year's freshman class, compared to 12.9 percent a year ago and 11.7 percent two years ago.
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