ROCKFORD, Ill. (AP) — Colleges and universities in Illinois are struggling to combat declining enrollment that was spurred by low unemployment rates, a shrinking population, unstable funding sources and increased out-of-state competition.

Data show that the state’s community colleges and state universities suffered a decline of nearly 100,000 students from 2008 to 2018, The Rockford Register Star reported .

Chicago State University has seen enrollment drop by 57 percent. Shawnee, Kennedy-King and Rend Lake community colleges all have seen enrollment numbers cut in half.

The bulk of the losses were seen at the community college level, which lost 75,000 students. But despite the decline in overall enrollment, more students have been graduating from community colleges in the state. Almost 57,000 students graduated in 2010, compared to about 66,000 in 2017.

The University of Illinois System has seen some success over the past decade. The system’s Chicago campus has seen a 23 percent growth in enrollment. The Chicago and Urbana-Champaign campuses are each up nearly 6,000 students.

The system has done well in recent years because of aggressive recruitment, outreach, financial aid and sheer size, said Barbara Wilson, the system’s executive vice president and vice president for academic affairs.

“What you get with big universities like Chicago and Urbana is we can withstand those challenges a little better than some of the regional campuses throughout the state. Yes, those budget cuts hurt us, but they haven’t decimated us,” she said.

The system has also invested in its Chicago campus, frozen tuition rates and launched Illinois Commitment, which will offer free tuition to Urbana-Champaign for in-state students who meet certain income criteria, Wilson said.