This year has been a record-setting year in admissions, not just for the number of applications received, but also for the number of applications received from minorities.Ray Brown, dean of undergraduate admissions, said 32.9 percent of the applications submitted this year were from minorities. That is up from 29.3 percent in 2006 and 23.9 percent in 2005.

Brown said an increase like this is extraordinary.

Of the more than 1,300 applications submitted from minorities, 20 percent didn’t actually complete the application process. Of the total applications from minority students, Brown said 29.4 percent will be admitted.

“We have been so far behind the curve for so long,” Brown said. “Any increase is a welcome increase.”

The increase, Brown said, may be due to the university having instituted so many programs over the last five years specifically for minority students.

Victoria Herrera, an admissions counselor, said it is a lot easier to implement those programs and ideas because of support from the administration.

“What makes TCU different is that we have the support of the administration for enhancing minorities in the student body,” Herrera said.

Brown said though there have been increased efforts to increase diversity over the last five years, he said the admissions staff wasn’t recruiting differently this year than last.

“Each year builds on the previous year,” Brown said.

Herrera said, however, that TCU has several programs on the local, state and national levels that contribute to bringing in minority students. She said TCU works closely with Fort Worth Independent School District programs that prepare students for college. On the state level, TCU works with other colleges in Texas to put on Camp College, an event organized over a few days on a college campus to tell high school juniors and seniors about college.

“They get the true college experience,” Herrera said.

Herrera said TCU also participates in the National Hispanic Institute in which high school students are brought to a host university for a college experience. Events like this, Herrera said, help spread the word about TCU.

“We’ve had, in the past, some students who have decided to come to TCU because they came to one of these programs,” Herrera said.

Brown also said he thinks the campus is more welcoming to minority students, something besides recruiting efforts that has contributed to the growing diversity.

Herrera said she sees the awareness of bringing minority students to TCU growing on campus, which in turn contributes to a more welcoming atmosphere.

“If the awareness is growing, it kind of filters down for the welcoming to become stronger,” Herrera said.

Two years ago, TCU had a day for admitted minority students to tour campus. Brown said that is something they are planning on having again in the next year or two.

Herrera said the purpose of the day was to show minority students that TCU is interested in them. Though she said the day was successful, Herrera said they don’t want to always do the same thing, and they also encourage minority students to attend already established events for prospective students, such as Monday at TCU.

Admissions also sponsors a calling campaign, Herrera said. Current minority students volunteer to call prospective minority students to talk to them about TCU. Programs like this, she said, offset the need to have a regular admitted students day just for them.

Another program, Community Scholars, continues to generate growing interest, Herrera said. This is a yearlong, competitive process that minority students from nine area high schools go through to be awarded scholarship money.

“It’s a very rewarding and moving process for these kids,” Herrera said.

Brown said he believes TCU’s diversity will continue to increase, though he said it currently has not set a goal for the amount of minorities it would like to see on campus.

Herrera said that she thinks there is still work to do, but she knows TCU is headed in the right direction.

“There’s no going back,” she said.