Hope College has enrolled a record number of students for the second consecutive year.

          Hope has 2,943 students this fall, topping the
  high of 2,920 set in the fall of 1998.  It is the fourth
  time in five years that enrollment at Hope has topped 2,900
  students.
          The overall total also includes a record-setting
  755 first-time students.  Hope has enrolled a record number
  of first-time students during each of the past three years.
          "This has been one of the most rewarding
  conclusions to a recruiting year that I've experienced at
  Hope," said Dr. James Bekkering, who is vice president for
  admissions at the college.
          The student body is comprised of 1,184 men and
  1,759 women from 36 states and territories, as well as from
  27 foreign countries.
          Students transferring to Hope from other colleges
  and universities total 63, compared with 81 in 1998.  There
  are 100 students enrolled in off-campus programs, compared
  to 98 last year.
          The enrollment by class, with last year's class in
  parentheses, is:  freshmen, 779 (771); sophomores, 726
  (713); juniors, 638 (601); seniors, 669 (691); and special
  students, 131 (144).
          The largest representation is from Michigan with
  2,148 students, followed by:  Illinois, 236; Indiana, 84;
  New York, 58; Ohio, 50; Minnesota, 34; Iowa, 25; Wisconsin,
  24; New Jersey, 23; California, 12; and Pennsylvania, 10.
          Foreign countries represented in the student body
  include Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Ecuador, Ethiopia,
  France, Germany, India, Japan, Kenya, Korea, Liberia,
  Mexico, Nepal, Norway, Pakistan, Palestine, Peru, Romania,
  Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Tajikistan, Turkey,
  the Ukraine, the United Kingdom and Zambia.
          Hope College was chartered in 1866 and is
  affiliated with the Reformed Church in America (RCA).  The
  college offers courses in 56 majors leading to a Bachelor of
  Arts, Bachelor of Music, Bachelor of Science or Bachelor of
  Science in Nursing degree.