“We have been planning for this day for at least 15 months, so everyone is thrilled with our enrollment numbers,” said Jan Salzman, director of student enrollment services.

The 5,000th student, Benjamin Rodriguez, was greeted with balloons and gifts of Temple College merchandise upon his registration.

“Ben is a first-time freshman, so he is excited,” Salzman said. “We will make sure this first semester is a positive experience for him.”

Rodriguez, who just relocated to Temple from Copperas Cove, will begin study in the radiology department this fall.

When presented with his prizes, he said, “You’re serious? I thought this was all a joke!”

By 5:30 p.m. Monday, 5,500 students had registered, and registration continued through 6 p.m., said Susan Howe, director of college communications.

Those numbers include students from the main campus in Temple, as well as campuses in Cameron and Taylor.

The number is up about 5 percent over last year’s enrollment, Howe said, adding that is based on unofficial numbers since registration is ongoing. Enrollment in the fall of 2007 was 4,787. Enrollment for fall 2006 was 4,279.

Temple College’s target enrollment for fall 2008 was 4,852 in order to meet its goal for Closing the Gap.

Closing the Gap, which started in 2000, is a statewide initiative to increase enrollment in higher education by 630,000 by 2015 in order to ensure the state has an educated workforce, Howe said.

Of those 630,000 students, 70 percent are expected to start at a community college, she said.

“This is a great time to be a part of Temple College,” said Dr. Glenda Barron, president of Temple College. “Passing the 5,000th student enrollment mark for this fall means that TC is serving the community’s needs for higher education and is contributing to the state’s efforts to Closing the Gap by 2015.”

Classes at TC start Wednesday.