ANN ARBOR—Minority student enrollment at the University of Michigan’s Ann Arbor campus is at its highest level ever, according to fall enrollment figures released today (Oct. 19).

Students of color now number 8,108, or 24.8 percent of all students, up from last year’s total of 7,927, or 24.2 percent of total enrollment. This year’s figure is more than twice the total of minority students enrolled in 1986, the year before the Michigan Mandate was established to increase minority enrollment.

”I am extremely pleased to see that our renewed efforts to increase the enrollment of students of color are paying off,” says President James J. Duderstadt. ”This is especially exciting for me in my last year as president.

”The Michigan Mandate is working and I hope that our recruitment and retention efforts will gather even more momentum in the years to come. We still have work to do, and reaching our goals will require energy and commitment.”

For the fifth straight year, enrollment of African Americans is at a record high. African American students now number 2,846, or 8.7 percent of total enrollment, compared with 2,715, or 8.3 percent, last year. This represents the largest gain—a 4.8 percent increase—among minority groups over last year.

Asian American students, who make up the largest portion of minority enrollment, now total 3,519, or 10.8 percent of the student body, up from 3,421, or 10.4 percent, last year.

Hispanic/Latino student enrollment fell slightly to 1,498, or 4.6 percent of all students, from 1,533, or 4.7 percent, last year.

Enrollment for Native American students also dropped slightly to 245, or 0.7 percent of total students enrolled, from 258, or 0.8 percent, last year.

Minority students now comprise 25.6 percent (5,805 students) of total undergraduate enrollment, including 2,548 Asian Americans (11.2 percent of undergraduates); 2,026 (8.9 percent) African Americans; 1,050 Hispanic/Latino students (4.6 percent); and 181 Native Americans (0.8 percent).

Graduate and professional programs now enroll 2,303 minority students (23 percent of all graduate/professional students). These include 971 Asian Americans (9.7 percent), 820 African Americans (8.2 percent), 448 Hispanic/Latino students

Although overall student enrollment is 36,687 for 1995- 96, minority enrollment figures are based on a total adjusted enrollment count of 32,690 (22,669 undergraduates and 10,021 graduate/professional students). This includes only U.S. citizens and permanent residents enrolled in degree-granting programs (foreign students are excluded).