UWC- Enrollment Management Committee Minutes
April 21, 2008
 

Location: President's Conference Room

Time: 3:30 p.m.

Attendance: Bob Trusz, Jonica Burke, Brian Saul, Ann Marie Short, Jackie Allen, , Skip Miller, Jim McPherson, Tiffany Weaver

Not in Attendance: Sandi Delabar, Tim Hamilton, Keenan Perry, Dale Taylor, Kejing Liu, Halea Hatton, Jessica Smith, Barb Bradbury

•Approval of Minutes

•Bob will be putting together and end of the year report for the committee.

•Results from Survey:
1. Connection Training for all staff.
2. Include a “block of time” on faculty orientation day to impress the importance of academic advising and customer service towards students.
3. Establish an “information booth” in the Welcome Center to be staffed by student workers.
4. Need for schedule flexibility, more night classes, more yahoo and google ads, more on-line classes and more professional friendly web page.
5. Open Enrollment and Shawnee Shuffle.
6. Students want communication and trust building from faculty.

•Academic Advisor
1. Administrative Position for an academic advisor for each department.
2. Position would “only” advise students for the department.
3. Miss advising is detrimental to students.

•Signage
1. Universal signage for entire campus.
2. More enlarged campus map boards.
 

UWC-Enrollment Management Committee Minutes
December 10, 2007

Time: 4:00 p.m.

Location: Dean’s Conference Room

Attendance: Bob Trusz, Dale Taylor, Jim McPhearson, Brian Saul, Sandi Delabar, Keenan Perry, Barb Bradbury, Tiffany Weaver, Kejing Liu, Ann Marie Short, Jackie Allen, Halea Hatton

Not in Attendance: Jonica Burke, Skip Miller, Tim Hamilton, Jessica Smith

•Approval of Minutes

•Current Positives to Improve Retention:
1. Continuing scholarships at recruitment – giving information to students so they know what to expect over four years.
2. 60 hours to declare major up from 45 hours.
3. Expanded advertisement to television in Huntington WV, Charleston, Columbus, and Cincinnati areas.
4. Fairly dramatic enrollment increase in Hamilton County due to advertisement. Advertisement dollars are working.
5. Expanded search mailing areas.
6. Retention efforts with Bursar Office. Students with late or outstanding balances are called from Admission staff. Went from 33 students to 6 after calls placed that would have been dropped.
7. Admission Office moving back to UC – convenience for students.
8. Focus on small schools less than 200 students?
9. Search mailings to ACT’s with 25 and over offering scholarships.
10. More information to parents.
11. Parent link on FA webpage.

•Areas to Improve on:
1. Availability of courses; are students planning; did department chairs talk; departments more receptive to add classes; too many evening, not enough daytime classes.
2. Need more online class options. Some pilot programs possibly in English and Math departments.
3. Need just one calendar on the website; source 25, student activity, sa forward. Calendars aren’t consistent, very confusing to students.
4. Need for a student rec center. Need more money for student activities, not just fun, but also involvement in community.
5. Need for a Student Recreation Center.
6. Improve faculty knowledge of what is going on at SSU.
7. Faculty advises too many students.
8. Academic advising needs addressed most importantly. Do not always give good advice.
9. Too many adjuncts. Do not advise make for too many evening classes.
10. Is there a clear goal for learning communities?
11. Goals for Supplemental Instruction?
12. Mentoring. How successful is it?
13. Retention is a problem with undecided students. Most major on campus pushing to take university classes for decision making.
14. Need Freshman Year Experience course even if just a one hour course to continue upon orientation?
15. Programs that are down in enrollment need to look at recruiting undecided students.
16. Address more systematically students who do not return to SSU.
17. Need BS in Health Science for those who can’t get into programs.
18. Better advising for students who have no chance of getting into a health science program.
19. Students, who don’t understand how difficult college is, think they can work 30 to 40 hours per week and go to school full time.
20. Parents need information on how difficult college is. Need information on limiting work hours etc.
21. Retention efforts. Dean’s and President’s List accolade to possibly pins from certificates.
22. Need to have a family weekend.
23. Orientation on weekend.
24. Convocation – needs more tradition.
25. Parent newsletter/parent club.
26. Billboard signs to let people know where SSU is i.e. you’re 25 miles from SSU.
27. Make effort to understand every student does not live locally.
28. Up the SSU SPIRIT on welcome back week in the fall. SSU flags on every flag pole downtown Portsmouth, specials at restaurants and welcome back on business signs. River Days?
29. Portsmouth Welcome Center and Chamber of Commerce? Are they showing SSU spirit? River Days theme was OSU yet pageant was held on our campus. SSU students felt this was a slap in the face.

Next Meeting: Monday, January 28, 2008 4:00 p.m.
 

UWC-Enrollment Management Committee Minutes
November 26, 2007

Time: 4:00 p.m.

Location: President’s Conference Room

Attendance: Bob Trusz, Jim McPhearson, Jonica Burke, Tiffany Weaver, Keenan Perry, Skip Miller, Brian Saul, Sandi Delabar, Ann Marie Short, Dale Taylor Barb Bradbury, Tim Hamilton, and Kejing Liu

Not in Attendance: Jackie Allen, Jessica Smith, and Halea Hatton

•Introduction of Committee Members

•Review of Committee Goals
1. Review and recommend enrollment strategies
2. Measure current methods of enrollment management and retention efforts
3. Advise the President of the methods
4. Advise the President of financial aid, scholarship, and retention of students

•Brainstorming Session – committee members discussed resources and ideas
1. Recruit students in high school bring in as a freshman, keep student thru graduation and then bring back as an alumni
2. Explore the reference resource websites given on agenda sheet to get a good grasp on professional enrollment management
3. Review Hanover Group – SSU subscribes to it retention main focus
4. Review College Keys Compact – Bob has books if anybody is interested in reading
5. Focus on low income students – 54% currently Pell eligible at SSU
6. Health Science Programs very attractive for university, but lose many students who aren’t accepted into the program. Limited to class size due to clinical sites, faculty accreditation, etc.
a. In the past, we forced students to choose a major by 45 credit hours, now has been changed to 60 semester hours which will help elevate some
b. BS degree in health science for student to go to will hopefully make its way thru faculty within two years
7. Market to students who aren’t college ready and make successful to get into the program of choice
8. Lack of university wide commitment to recruitment and retention
9. We are still compared to branches and community colleges 2 & 4 yr programs
10. Retention of freshman to sophomores is 60%
11. Most of our students view themselves as community college students, don’t identify themselves with university
12. Statically practice selective admission – follow retention rate of the group who is college ready and compare to other universities – don’t include developmental students
13. Open Enrollment yet entry hurdles for health science programs, gaming, and teacher education programs

•Current recruitment strategies
1. Target high school students 18 months in advance, those who have already made contact with us thru high school and college fair visits
2. August 2007, 21,000 piece mailing to those who took ACT interested in a major we offer. ACT 25 or higher target President Scholarship if hs gpa 3.8 or higher; ACT 20 – 24 tell about the school and scholarships; ACT 19 or lower tell about the school

•FALL 2007 Student Search activities for New Recruits
1. Mailings to four counties in Kentucky across from Cincinnati, offering option of in-state tuition if they would attend SSU
2. Mailing to ACT 24 or higher students in KY, OH, and WV who showed and interest in OT, OTA, PT, PTA. Bachelor’s of Arts in Psychology & Master’s of Occupational Therapy 3+2 Program with Kris Kacir and Debra Scurlock
3. In February 2008 will be mailing 10 – 12,000 piece mailing in Ohio and the 9 counties in Kentucky who took ACT in October and December 2007

•Bob is preparing a report for the cabinet next week on current recruitment strategies and will forward the report on to the committee

•Homework – familiarize yourself with the recruitment, financial aid, and student success center with what we currently do and changes we’ve made here at SSU over the last couple of years

•Next meeting is scheduled for Monday, December 10th at 4:00 p.m. in President’s Conference Room. Would like o meet twice per semester.