Dear faculty and staff,
The higher education landscape is more competitive than ever. Colleges and universities across the nation are investing heavily in financial aid, technology, marketing, staffing and more to attract students at a time when innovation is giving students more educational options than ever before. Families and students, meanwhile, are demanding that institutions show greater evidence of value for the cost of attendance before committing to enroll.
In order to stay competitive in this fast-changing environment, we will realign key administrative functions within our university. A newly created Office of Enrollment Management will bring together two administrative units that sit currently within Student Affairs – Financial Aid and Undergraduate Admissions. The Office of Enrollment Management will be headed by a newly created Vice Chancellor position that will report directly to the Chancellor and serve on the university’s Senior Leadership Group.
This elevated status for Enrollment Management reflects how best practice is evolving in higher education. In the coming days, I will convene a search committee to conduct a national search in order to attract a seasoned leader for the Vice Chancellor position. The realignment will take effect shortly after the new Vice Chancellor joins the university.
In recent months, we have made several major moves to prepare for this organizational change. Earlier this year, Provost Wilkin commissioned a review of our Admissions function, and we are now implementing several recommendations that resulted from that review. The Offices of Undergraduate Admissions and Information Technology are collaborating on implementation of a new software platform that will make our Undergraduate Admissions program more efficient and better enable recruitment marketing and communications efforts. University Marketing & Communications is expanding our digital marketing efforts in an effort to generate interest in our university among more prospective students and their families.
The moves that we’ve taken thus far are steps in a process to enhance our efforts and put greater focus on this mission-critical area. Our university offers a phenomenal educational experience that prepares students to start building their personal legacies. This realignment is an investment that will give greater administrative focus and strategic emphasis towards building our future.
Sincerely,
