BANGOR, Maine (AP) Maine’s community colleges are experiencing the first increase in the number of students since 2014.

The Bangor Daily News reports the enrollment at Maine’s seven community colleges grew 4% this fall over the same period last year. Enrollment grew from 16,662 students to 17,327.

The community college system experienced generally steep growth from the time it formed in 2002 until 2011. Enrollment then started to steadily decline until this most recent fall.

The system attributed the increase to initiatives it launched over the past year such as contacting prospective students through text instead of email and adding in-demand programs.