Author: Dwyer Education Strategies

John W. Dysart President The Dysart Group, Inc. The first woman President at Ferrum College, Dr. Jennifer Braaten, continues to literally transform the small institution located in southwest Virginia. Extraordinary enrollment growth during her presidency has enabled the College to secure her vision by investing in program offerings, co-curricular opportunities for students and the physical plant. “While other private schools are trying to maintain enrollment, Ferrum is growing,” said Bobby Thompson, the Senior Vice President for Administration. “We feel blessed that we have enjoyed several years of growth, which has resulted in growth in facilities and programs.” During Dr. Braaten?s […]

Dr. Marylouise Fennell Partner Hyatt Fennell, Higher Education Services Dr. Scott Miller President Bethany College Nearly 40 percent of students who entered baccalaureate degree programs this academic year will fail to complete their degrees within six years, if recent patterns continue. The implications of this trend are grave, both for our nation, which badly needs qualified workers ready to fill key jobs in emerging sectors, and for the non-retained students themselves. Current research underscores and enhances what we have long known: greater attention to student-centered issues equals greater retention. ?What we almost always find when we are retained by institutions […]

John W. Dysart President The Dysart Group, Inc. College and university presidents are right-fully focused on finding new revenue sources during these challenging economic times. Many are pursuing traditional paths such as tuition increases, attempts to reduce discount rates, capital campaigns and other fundraising initiatives. While enrollment increases seem a somewhat obvious option to increase revenue, presidents often hesitate to invest in this option. This topic occurred to me as I recently held discussions with enrollment management leaders at a couple of client institutions. We were discussing each institution’s success in significantly increasing enrollment and actually took a few minutes […]

Dr. Marylouise Fennell Partner Hyatt Fennell, Higher Education Services Dr. Scott Miller President Bethany College News on the enrollment front is mixed, adding to the challenge facing college Presidents already beleaguered by financial sustainability issues. The “Millennials,” the mini-boom generation now in and just out of college, is being replaced with a much smaller demographic. The good news is that there is still time to plan, because the percentage of high school graduates entering college is projected to increase through 2014. However, it’s estimated that in the next decades the number of students enrolled in U.S. colleges and universities will […]

Christine Gormican Hierl President Gormican Hierl Consulting Pat Riley, longtime NBA coach, said it best with, ?a champion needs a motivation above and beyond winning.? For someone who has won five championships and is considered to be one of the greatest coaches in the game?s history, Mr. Riley knows a truth that is often overlooked: It?s not necessarily the big trophy or the title that makes a champion. But rather, it is the ability for that athlete to get up every day and achieve the very best he has to give. Be it a coach or an admissions professional, therein […]

John W. Dysart President The Dysart Group, Inc. New rules going into effect in July are likely to present retention challenges for many colleges and universities. The Department of Education has changed the rules with regard to satisfactory academic progress. Students have always been required to demonstrate that they are making satisfactory progress toward attaining their degrees or certificates. The regulations have included both a quantitative and qualitative measure. Let?s talk about grades. Generally, students are expected to achieve a minimum, cumulative grade point average of at least 2.0 by the end of their second year. Many colleges and university […]

Dr. Doug Spadaro, Ph.D. President Premier Communications Mr. David Waggoner, M.A. Vice President Premier Communications Today?s high school juniors and seniors (and increasingly, sophomores) are inundated with literature from hundreds of colleges and universities. This article explores the various search strategies, methods and materials that make a search more effective and efficient. A typical high school student will receive mailings and e-mails from scores of colleges and universities throughout their high school career. The mailings, almost universally, consist of either a letter from the Admissions office, in a brightly colored envelope with the institution?s name and logo prominently displayed. Or, […]

Louise Baker Zen College Life College is the best time of many people’s lives, but for some the dream turns into a nightmare. There are a variety of reasons why this might occur, but here are five of the most common: No Support System 1. Some colleges offer students a meager support system. As a result, students feel alone, homesick and confused, and they believe they have nowhere to turn. Many drop out; an unfortunate result considering many could succeed if they had professor and student mentors. These students could be retained if colleges instituted more aggressive “welcome programs” and […]

Tracey Dysart-Ford Director of Guidance and College Counseling Immaculate Conception High School I have spent 6 months on the ?other side of the desk.? After 22 years in college admissions, I now have a great opportunity to be a high school college counselor. This journey of changing careers in my mid-forties has been challenging. Seeing things from the eyes of students and parents versus seeing things as an admission professional has been interesting and informative. The experience has enabled me to take a step back and re-evaluate some of my former assumptions. We are coming to the end of the […]

John W. Dysart President The Dysart Group, Inc. It is the first month of the new year and it is time to send financial aid award letters. Check with your Director of Financial Aid and ensure that award letters for Fall 2011 are already being sent to both new and returning students. I am amazed at the number of colleges and universities that have not made early financial aid processing a campus priority. Showing students and their families how they can afford to attend or re-enroll at your institution is critically important. This has always been true as the cost […]