The College has admitted 37 percent more African-American, Latino and Native American students to next fall's incoming class than it admitted last fall.

"William and Mary is committed to preparing students to live, work and contribute in a meaningful way to a world that is culturally more diverse than ever before," said Earl T. Granger III '92, M.Ed. '98, the College's new associate provost for enrollment.

"It is imperative that this campus provide the academic environment, co-curricular experience, and class composition that broadens, strengthens and challenges how we think about each other, and more importantly, relate to one another."

The College's Office of Undergraduate Admission this year received a record number of applications (10,717). The middle 50th percentile on the SAT for students admitted for the fall of 2005 was 1310-1470, which is identical to the middle 50th percentile on the combined SAT math and critical reading scores for students admitted this year. William and Mary expects to enroll an entering class of approximately 1,350 students this fall.

Among this year's admitted students, the number of African-Americans admitted increased 27 percent; the number of Latinos admitted increased 46 percent; and the number of Native Americans admitted increased 58 percent from the previous year.

Admission officials credited this year's significant increase to targeted outreach efforts and on-campus programs.