Last January Gary Kelsey adopted 250 children.

Since then, the University director of minority admissions and others have visited students at Philadelphia's Spring Garden Elementary School as part of an effort to increase future minority enrollment at the University.

Minority students comprise nearly 100 percent of the school's population, where Kelsey said he interacts with third through fifth grade students.

While he does not expect Spring Garden students to attend Penn State, Kelsey said the University will accomplish a goal if these students go on to any institute of higher education.

"We know that the college 'going rate' of minority students is on the decline and we want to change that," he said.

But during the last two years, members of the University's black community have protested the racial climate here and have repeatedly asked for more immediate improvements at this campus.

Undergraduate Student Government Senate President Ron Marlow said the idea of adopting an elementary school is "well intentioned," but results here will not show up for a long period of time. Immediate steps must be taken to provide results at Penn State campuses, he added.

The University has no control over the socio-economic factors that affect a student's ability to attend college, but administrators can concentrate on issues like the racial climate here, Marlow said.

At last November's University Board of Trustees meeting, an increase in overall minority enrollment was announced, but black student enrollment dropped .2 percent between 1987-88. Black students currently comprise less than 4 percent of the total student population.

Officials blamed the low statistics on negative publicity generated by the student protests. But blaming a bad public image does not solve problems of environment, Marlow said.

Enrollment figures for next fall will not be available until the beginning of that semester, said Tony Moore, assistant director of minority recruitment and community affairs. But if the University continues its recruitment efforts, long term effects will become apparent, he said.

While he called the recruitment of black students a big challenge, Moore said a sense of optimism remains in the recruitment process.

As long-term efforts exist at the elementary school level, minority high school students are being targeted to fulfill some short-term goals, Kelsey said.

During high school visits, officials "must confront the reality of Penn State's image," Kelsey said. After each presentation, someone always asks if the University is a safe place for black students, he said.

High school students and their parents are getting the message that "Penn State is not the best place for minorities to go to school," he said.

Questionnaires on the effectiveness of the University's recruitment program are also targeted at prospective students who did and did not choose Penn State, Moore said. Some of the suggestions are then incorporated into the next year's programs, he said.

University officials must realize the connection between recruitment and retention, Kelsey said. Students must know what to expect from the University once they decide to attend, he said.

As a part of addressing these concerns, the University will hold a Mid-Winter Education Summit during spring break, he said.

Administrators, faculty members and students will make presentations and answer questions about the University at the summit, he said. It will be attended by parents and guidance counselors of prospective students because they are influential in the decision-making process, he said.