Howard President Defends University’s Unenrollment Decisions, Says More Than 200 Students Have Been Re-Enrolled

After gaining national attention for unenrolling more than 500 incoming first-year students over missed tuition and financial-aid deadlines, Howard University has reinstated over 200 incoming students, according to the university’s interim president.

In an interview with Stephanie Ramos on ABC News Live on Wednesday, interim President Wayne A.I. Frederick offered new insight into the university’s perspective amid intense backlash from students.

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Asked if overenrollment was a contributing factor in the university’s decision-making, Frederick told ABC News that all students who were unenrolled previously had housing assigned to them and that this was not a matter of “bed capacity.”

He said the reason for holding students to the payment deadline is that the university wants to avoid putting students in financial situations that would prevent them from finishing their degree, citing Howard’s four-year graduation rate at under 70%.

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