MOSCOW, (AP) - New University of Idaho President Chuck Staben has spent his first 80 or so days listening and learning from the communities around him, and now the newest Vandal is off and running.

Having come to Idaho during a period of change and reform, Staben is confident the university offers a great value and education to its students and is ready to embrace the 60 percent post-secondary credential goal set forth by state leaders.

Currently, institutions across the state provide an education to nearly 39 percent of Idaho inhabitants, and the State Board of Education as well as Idaho's business leaders want to increase that number by nearly 20 percent, he said

Staben said the UI now has 10,000 students and looks to recruit an additional 5,000 during the next few years.

"I think we need to be more strategic and aggressive in enrollment management strategies. I think we haven't been as effective in marketing the value that we offer students and families as we could be," Staben said.

Staben told the Moscow-Pullman Daily News the university needs to work on recruiting more efficiently across the state, particularly in the markets in southern and southeastern Idaho.

"Students need to understand that they can go to college, No. 1, and that the University of Idaho is a good place for them to go to college," Staben said.

Staben said this means working more with the high schools around the state and possibly making some changes in how they position university communication personnel in areas such as Boise and Idaho Falls.

He said the census estimates there are 650,000 people in Idaho ages 25-54 who do not have a bachelor's degree or higher - a very large pool of possible university candidates. He said even if 1 percent of those individuals chose the UI it would garner 6,000 additional students.