© 2025 Michigan State University Board of Trustees
Public Media from Michigan State University
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Adrian College boosts enrollment with ambitious athletic programming

Jeffrey Docking photo
Courtesy photo
/
Adrian College
Adrian College President Jeffrey Docking

Small liberal arts colleges around the country have been struggling to keep up enrollment, but Adrian College in southeast Michigan has managed to increase enrollment by investing in a multitude of sports programs. We talk to the president of Adrian College, Dr. Jeffrey Docking.

East Lansing native Dr. Jeffrey Docking became the president of Adrian College in 2005. At that time, enrollment had been dropping and the college was losing money. Docking hatched a plan to revitalize the college, not by cutting back, but by spending on sports. And it worked.

By 2012, Adrian had reached record enrollment. U.S. News and World Report has twice ranked Adrian College as the #1 Up and Coming Baccalaureate Institution in the Midwest, and ranked it in the Top 20 Best Baccalaureate Colleges in the Midwest.

Current State talks with Dr. Jeffrey Docking about Adrian College’s comeback.

Related Content
Every WKAR News story you read is rooted in fact-based, local journalism, produced without commercial influence and available for free to everyone in mid-Michigan. No paywalls. Ever.

But this work doesn’t fund itself. With significant cuts to federal funding, public media is facing a critical moment. If you believe in journalism that serves the public interest, now is the time to act. Donate today.