(WASHINGTON EXAMINER) – A small group of conservative religious colleges are defying the national trend of declining enrollment in higher education and crediting their missions, as well as their handling of COVID-19, for the bump. College enrollment nationwide has declined by over 1 million students since 2019, with the biggest drop in 2020, according to a report from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center in January. The decline has largely been blamed on students being required to attend college virtually or under restriction. Even through the spring semester of 2022, institutions such as Yale University and Georgetown University shifted classes online and, in the case of Yale, even restricted students from going to restaurants off-campus.