SVSU welcomed 1,350 freshmen this fall, compared to 1,336 last year. The university also reported gains in international students with 123 new international students and 319 total international students taking classes, compared to 103 new students and 291 total international students last fall.

In addition, SVSU enrolled 139 new graduate students, compared to 100 new graduate students a year ago.

“We are very proud of our recruiting efforts, but more importantly, we are very pleased at the feedback we receive from students and employers alike: SVSU graduates are well-prepared for their chosen careers,” said Ken Fettig, SVSU vice president for enrollment management.

“SVSU has a rich history of field-based learning, coupled with academic coursework, so students have practical experience when they graduate. In an employment market disrupted by artificial intelligence and other factors, knowing how to think critically and how to adapt to changing workplace conditions is vital.”

The total number of students enrolled at SVSU this fall is 6,849, down 57 students from a year ago. SVSU saw declines in new transfer students and in returning students.

SVSU’s award-winning residence halls — No. 2 among all public universities in the United States — continue to be filled to capacity, as some 2,625 students, including 73% of the freshman class, are living on campus this term.

Fall classes at SVSU began on Monday, Aug. 31.

“We are pleased to have come to an agreement that works for our members and for the university,” said Jennifer Chaytor, professor of chemistry and president of the SVSU Faculty Association. “We love SVSU and our students, and we are grateful to have a deal that moves faculty forward financially, while remaining mindful of the tuition our students are charged.”

The contract calls for salary increases of 4% in year one and year two, and 3.25% in year three. Faculty will receive an additional $300 increase in year one, as well, in recognition of SVSU’s move to a block tuition structure, rather than a credit hour tuition structure, as certain provisions of the prior contract were tied to credit hours. The university also agreed to increase contributions toward faculty members’ health insurance.

“We appreciate the dedicated teaching of our faculty and their commitment to empower our students to advance their lives and careers,” said George Grant Jr, SVSU president. “Working together, we are seeing the number of students choosing SVSU continue to rebound, which is valuable for employers throughout our region and state, and for our entire community.”

The contract is effective July 1, 2026, through June 30, 2029. SVSU faculty ratified the agreement on Thursday, Sept. 24.

“What the Constitution Means to Me” by Heidi Schreck will run from Wednesday, Sept. 30, through Sunday, Oct. 4, in SVSU’s Malcolm Field Theatre for the Performing Arts.

An American Legion hall may be an unlikely place to find a 15-year-old girl, yet in 1989, high school student Heidi Schreck made the rounds of Legion posts around the country, participating in Constitutional debates to win prize money for college. Nearly 30 years later, playwright Schreck produced “What the Constitution Means to Me,” exploring themes like domestic abuse, women’s rights, immigration and the history of the United States.

SVSU associate professor of theatre Tommy Wedge directs the play. He explained that he and several students saw the production at the American College Theatre Festival in 2025.

“Our students were so keyed in,” Wedge said. “They were buzzing about it all during the festival.” Wedge recognized that this was a play that would engage college students and also attract younger students into a theater and get them talking.

“This idea of making politics and history present, I think, is really powerful,” Wedge said.

Set in an American Legion Hall, the play features just three characters: Heidi, played by Ella Koenigknecht, an English education major from  St. Johns; the Legionnaire, played by Jaiden Gardner, a theatre major from North Branch; and the Debater, played by Lexy Andres, an environmental science major from New Lothrop.

The first half of the play is an intimate portrait of Heidi Schreck’s life, Wedge explained. “She talks about how she paid for her college tuition by going to American Legions and talking about what the Constitution meant to her. And she won all these competitions.”

The second half of the play introduces a Lincoln-Douglas-style debate, with one of the actors proposing to abolish the Constitution and the other proposing to amend the Constitution, then someone in the audience votes to determine the outcome.

The play is fitting for this election year, and the theatre department is collaborating with Cardinals Vote, an SVSU nonpartisan initiative focused on connecting SVSU students with opportunities to engage in the democratic system through voter registration, candidate and ballot information and turning out to the polls to ensure student voices are heard in the electoral process. Cardinals Vote is collaborating on the lobby display and will have a table outside the theater.

Wedge said the department is also collaborating with St. Clair County Community College and will stage the production at the college in Port Huron following the run at SVSU.

“What the Constitution Means to Me” runs Wednesday, Sept. 30-Saturday, Oct. 3 at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, Oct. 4, at 3 p.m. Tickets are $15 (plus fees); there is no charge for SVSU students. Tickets can be purchased online or at the box office beginning one hour before showtime.