The UCA Board of Trustees extended its contract with the Edge apartments for the 2025-26 academic year at its meeting last month.
The extension will lease more than 200 beds for the upcoming school year.
“We are very optimistic about our overall enrollment for the next academic year,” UCA President Houston Davis said. “We believe we will have another strong incoming freshman class and continued momentum among our returning students and new transfers.”
The agreement also left the leasing option open for the 2026-27 academic year.
“Having the lease agreement in place at this time allows upper-class students the opportunity to select The Edge for residential housing,” Davis said.
The extension comes in the wake of an estimated 11% increase in student enrollment for fall 2025 compared with fall 2024, according to the Division of Enrollment Services and Student Success.
The increase in enrollment has been attributed to UCA Commitment, a debt-free tuition program for Pell-eligible or low-income students.
Low-income students are classified as students who come from households that earn $100,000 or less.
In 2024, the average Arkansan household income was $82,544, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
In its first year, UCA Commitment had 767 students enrolled in the program, creating a 26% increase in overall freshman enrollment.
“Through UCA Commitment, we have been able to provide critical support for our students, ensuring they have the resources and support they need to persist and succeed,” Kevin Thomas, vice president of enrollment services and student success, said.
“This program highlights UCA’s continued dedication to not only enrolling students but guiding them through their success and their entire educational journey,” Thomas said.
The board’s decision will include providing approximately 240 beds for upper-class students living at the Edge. This is coming off of UCA leasing 96 beds for students during the 2024-25 academic year.
Davis said UCA had been making plans for expanded housing in the years leading up to the first year of UCA Commitment.
He also expressed gratitude for UCA’s partnership with the Edge and its reliability as a place to house students.
The Edge is among several other apartment complexes near campus that UCA administration has contracted to house students in the wake of ever-rising enrollment numbers.
UCA had over 400 students apply for housing before the 2024-25 school year which has been mainly attributed to UCA Commitment’s introduction.
The apartment complex, located on Donaghey Avenue, has rooms that include four bedrooms, four bathrooms and a kitchen. All apartments are furnished.
The Edge is described on its website as blending “contemporary style and luxury amenities with rich Arkansas tradition.”
The student housing cost at the Edge is $4,085, the same as other residential apartments like Bear Village.
As of January, the number of housing applications filed by returning students was 1,258, which is an 84% increase from January 2024, according to the Office of Enrollment and Student Success.
The housing selection process for the 2025-26 academic year began in October. It ends April 1.
