Strategic Enrollment Management

As I greeted the audience at the recent Ruffalo Noel Levitz planning session, I was delighted to see so many faculty and staff accepting the invitation to help implement a strategic, coordinated enrollment management approach at Bloomsburg University.

The meeting was one more step in our renewed focus on student success that started with the creation of a new enrollment management division, headed by Tom Fletcher, and continued when we instituted the Student Success Collaborative, an initiative that touches all students through proactive and focused advising. The Council of Trustees’ approval of a Student Success Fee, effective this fall, shows their commitment to supporting initiatives that significantly impact student retention and graduation rates.

Why are we taking these steps? It is no surprise that our enrollment has dipped over the past few years. There are fewer college-age students and we are in competition with other universities for those with the greatest talent and ability. But enrollment management is more than merely recruiting enough students to hit a target number. It is bringing in students who are both a good fit for our university and able to take advantage of the majors, programs and resources we offer. It is increasing the number and percentage of students who complete their degrees.

Five working groups concentrating on the areas of graduate programs, undergraduate programs, marketing and recruitment, student success, and finance and financial aid, are working with Ruffalo Noel Levitz to complete a situation analysis. The analysis will show what Bloomsburg University is currently doing and what we must do to enhance student success. This process will lead to a plan that aligns our mission, fiscal resources and academic resources with the changing market environment. It will identify strategies to further enhance student academic achievement.

The strategic enrollment management process is an institution-wide responsibility and a central component of BU’s strategic plan, Impact 2017. I look forward to collaborating with the entire campus community over the next 10 months as we develop a comprehensive strategic enrollment plan that helps us to better manage the student life cycle, from their first contact with Bloomsburg, through enrollment to graduation and, ultimately, to proud and engaged alumni.

2015 President’s Strategic Planning Grants

During the 2015 spring semester, requests for Letters of Intent for the 2015 President’s Strategic Plan Grant awards were solicited. Eight Letters of Intent were received. Members of the Strategic Planning and Resource Council (SPARC), in consultation with me, asked that four of those Letters of Intent expand to a full proposal for review in the fall semester.

SPARC thoroughly vetted those four proposals for the 2015 President’s Strategic Plan Grant awards and presented their recommendations to me. I have selected three projects that will be funded.

Those projects are:

• Bloomsburg University Center for Strategic Communications Services — is an applied research learning center for students that provides a full range of public relations and marketing communications services to regional businesses and non-profit organizations. The University-based, student-focused Center is a win-win for both students and the community, as students gain access to professional opportunities and local organizations tap into student skills. Center participants, comprised of students from multiple academic departments, will sharpen expertise in public relations, marketing communications, management, sales, development and entrepreneurism by working with regional community leaders.
• English-Spanish Summer Enrichment (ESSE) Program — a two-week early outreach residential summer program for area Latino high school students. Participants will live on campus while attending courses targeting the improvement of their English language skills as well as the nurturing of their appreciation for their cultural and linguistic heritage.
• Mild Traumatic Brain Injury Research in Collegiate and High School Student Athletes — officially launched in September 2015 aimed at addressing the topic of concussion (mild traumatic brain injury) in conducting research to better understand this phenomenon, provide support and service to the medical community in return-to-play/return-to-learn decisions, and conduct translational activities that contribute to clinical application of knowledge. The medical community has focused efforts to address the need to better understand the diagnosis, treatment, and management of mTBI as a result of sport at all levels of participation.

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