The Office for Institutional Research released its Student Demographic Report for race and ethnicity for 2025, revealing a record number of Hispanic, African American/Black and biracial students at the University of Rhode Island.
White students, counted alone or in combination with another race, made up the largest share of enrollment this year with 13,446 students, according to the report. This is a decrease from 13,728 last year. Altogether, students of all racial and ethnic backgrounds totaled 17,471.
URI enrollment of Black or multiracial students rose from 371 to 1,653, according to the report. Hispanic and Latino student enrollment also grew steadily, increasing from 573 to 2,153.
Despite complications regarding the Trump administration, URI’s mission, vision and values for an inclusive community haven’t changed, according to Markeisha Miner, the vice president for community, equity and diversity.
“As a university, we care not only about our composition, but about people’s experience and engagement on this campus,” Miner said. “That’s how we demonstrate our commitment to inclusion and equality.”
It’s important that the university remains open and welcoming to local, out-of-state and global students of all backgrounds, according to Miner. Minority students make up a quarter of the student body.
The student demographics report is one of the many reports required by Rhode Island, according to Miner. The report shows whether students from all backgrounds are interested in attending URI.
A census report, the BI student demographics annually maps enrollment data, according to John Stringer, the executive director of institutional research at URI. On Oct. 15, the institutional research team looked at all enrolled students in the 2025-2026 school year and reported on the number of students by various categories including Race/Ethnicity Alone and In Combination.
URI released its first student demographics report in 2003. Each subsequent report since then is
listed under the student demographic summary section of the university website.
“[In the report], you see year over year progress in every single category,” Miner said. “[That] tells us that not only people [of varied backgrounds] are applying, but they’re being admitted and accepting our offer of admission.”
URI’s commitment to values for equity and diversity is emphasized through additional resources including the Snap climate survey, which ended on Friday, according to Miner. The survey allowed students and faculty to give their opinion about how welcoming the community is, if people have a sense of belonging on campus and feel that they are being treated fairly. URI communications conducted the survey last year and will continue to do so in years to come.
There is little difference between data from this year compared to past years, according to Stringer. The format for the report has stayed the same since it was first introduced. The only change made was the report itself in 2021; students who identify as more than one race, are recognized as an “in combination’ student.
“Rather than lumping students who select two or more races and ethnicities, [the new format] will show people in all categories,” Stringer said.
