NOTE:
Information is provided in Microsoft PowerPoint and Acrobat PDF format where indicated. You must
have Microsoft PowerPoint or PowerPoint Viewer installed
on your computer to view PPTs and Acrobat Reader 5.0 or higher to view PDFs. Get free downloads of PowerPoint® Viewer and Acrobat Reader by clicking the logos below.
OPENING SESSION
A New Conversation: More Degrees for Every Dollar (PPT, 985k)
Travis Reindl, Program Director, Jobs for the Future
Video of this presentation is also available. To request a DVD, e-mail Ben Hardcastle at bhardcastle@osrhe.edu.
Over the past century, the nation’s colleges and universities have made tremendous strides in meeting the demands of a growing and diversifying population. This unprecedented expansion of college opportunity has paid enormous economic and social dividends.
Continuing this expansion is crucial. The nation faces rapidly growing workforce demands at home and intensifying competition abroad. Disparities in educational opportunity and success linger, even as more Americans than ever before see education beyond high school as essential to their economic and social well-being.
Unfortunately, the percentage of adults with a college degree has leveled off, despite significant increases in spending by taxpayers and students and their families. This must change. While we must sustain investment in higher education, it will not be possible to award the number of degrees needed to be competitive by doing business as usual. We must focus on increasing productivity—more degrees for every dollar spent—to maintain our economic vitality and the promise of individual opportunity.
This interactive session outlined the productivity challenges facing Oklahoma and the nation and examined the role that retention plays in producing more degrees for every dollar spent.
LUNCHEON SESSION
The State of Enrollment Management in Oklahoma and the Country (PPT, 4.2m)
Kevin W. Crockett,
President and CEO,
Noel-Levitz
This session provided the results of the enrollment management inventory that Oklahoma’s colleges and universities completed in preparation for the conference, specifically comparing the results of the 2007 assessment with the results from a similar instrument administered by Noel-Levitz in 2004. The session also covered emerging enrollment management trends and their potential impact on Oklahoma colleges and universities.
CONCURRENT SESSIONS
Predictive Modeling Applications in Enrollment Management (PPT, 2.2m)
Kevin W. Crockett,
President and CEO,
Noel-Levitz
A growing number of colleges and universities have been using advanced analytics to better manage their enrollment outcomes. This session explored the application of predictive modeling technology to impact both recruitment and retention results on college campuses across the country. Campus-based examples were used to illustrate the ways that colleges and universities have used predictive modeling in their enrollment programs.
The Adult Learning Focused Institution: Principles and Practices (PPT, 602k)
Dr. Judy Wertheim,
Vice President for Higher Education Services, Council for Adult and Experiential Learning (CAEL)
Aware that helping adults learners earn a postsecondary degree is essential to the economic well-being of their state and the personal well-being of its citizens, many institutions are concerned about attracting and retaining adult students. To do so, they seek to meet their adult learners’ needs. But what are these needs? This session presented the essential principles of serving adult learners in higher education. The importance of the principles, tools for assessing them and concrete examples of how schools have used the tools were also discussed.
Untangling Wicked Problems: How to Maintain Hope When Dealing with Student Retention (PPT, 4.1m)
Dr. Rosemary Hayes,
Director, Consortium for Student Retention Data Exchange (CSRDE),
University of Oklahoma
The challenge of increasing student rates of retention and graduation is a complex and intractable one. A review of national statistics on student retention shows only small levels of improvement in comparison to the effort and resources focused on the issue. Could it be that there are problems so complex that they defy resolution? Or, is it possible that we could make headway if we used a different approach? There is hope. During this session, Dr. Hayes drew from her experience in decision support, systems engineering and organizational development to categorize the types of problems that confound higher education colleagues working on student retention. She also identified and provided examples of strategies that have been shown to work for each problem category. Participants came away from the session not only with the ability to distinguish between types of problems, but also with tips on how to customize their strategies to fit the problem type.
Strategic Research: Give Your Enrollment Vision a Reality Check (PPT, 4.3m)
Strategic Enrollment Planning Research Checklist (PDF, 62k)
Ruth K. Sims,
Senior Vice President,
Noel-Levitz
Note: The content of this presentation is copyrighted by Noel-Levitz and may not be reused without permission.
Most institutions want to be bigger, better and brighter, or some combination thereof. But will the market support it? Market research is a powerful reality check for your strategic enrollment plan. Based on internal and external factors, it can tell you if your institution’s goals are within reach – or if there are opportunities you have overlooked. This session focused on the research-based strategic assessment forecasting required to develop an attainable strategic plan.
The OKcollegestart.org Student Information Portal: An Implementation Update (PPT, 2.3m)
Armando Peña,
Assistant Vice Chancellor for GEAR UP,
Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education
The one-year anniversary of the launch of the OKcollegestart.org Student Information Portal is fast approaching, and its time for an update. What is the status of implementation? OKcollegestart.org is a comprehensive Web-based information system for prospective and current college students. The Web site provides students with a "one-stop shop" for college planning and preparation. OKcollegestart.org features online college applications and "campus tours" so that students can get the facts about Oklahoma colleges all in one place. The site also has various interactive tools that students can use to search for campuses that match any combination of selected criteria.
Utilizing the Unitized Data System (UDS): An Overview of the Data Access and Management Policy and Request Form
Michael Yeager,
Director of Research and Analysis,
Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education
The Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education's Division of Strategic Planning and Analysis collects and maintains a staggering amount of information from various sources, the main one being Oklahoma public institutions of higher education. Much of what is collected is available to those institutions for purposes such as tracking students. A discussion of the types of files, the levels of access and restrictions was followed with a presentation of procedures for obtaining information contained in those files.
Studies and Reports: www.okhighered.org/studies-reports
Data Management and Access Policy: www.okhighered.org/studies-reports/data-access-mgmt
Oklahoma Education Information System (OEIS): www.okhighered.org/oeis
Lessons to Be Learned by All: My Experience With Achieving the Dream – Community Colleges Count (PPT, 3m)
Dr. Myron L. Pope,
Vice President of Enrollment Management,
University of Central Oklahoma
Achieving the Dream is a multi-year national initiative to help more community college students succeed (earn degrees, earn certificates or transfer to other institutions to continue their studies). One of the primary efforts of the initiative requires participating colleges to be open and straightforward about their current performance while taking bold actions to improve it. Dr. Pope has served as a data coach for two colleges since the initiative began in 2004. In this presentation, he described how this experience has provided him with lessons that have transformed his perspective on his daily work as a vice president of enrollment management.
Streamline Your Enrollment Management Program: Case Studies From UCO (PPT, 805k)
Drew Duke, Executive Director for Student Financial Services, University of Central Oklahoma
Susan Wortham, Assistant Vice-President for Enrollment Management, University of Central
Oklahoma
Patti Neuhold, Process Improvement, University of Central Oklahoma
Karen Kusler, Center for Strategic Improvement, University of Central Oklahoma
Myron Pope, Vice-President for Enrollment Management, University of Central Oklahoma
Mark Moore, Director of Administrative Services, University of Central Oklahoma
Every day, organizations face the difficulty of making time to improve processes instead of simply addressing an issue with a “band-aid” fix. The University of Central Oklahoma has applied a process improvement method known as Transactional Lean to make improvements to broken processes in a quick and effective time period. The focus is to reduce wasted effort and improve efficiency of the process. The method was first used in the manufacturing world but now has been successfully implemented in education settings. In addition to a global view of Transactional Lean principles, UCO has three Lean processes to share in the enrollment management area.
Increasing Enrollment by Fulfilling Student Expectations through Community Partnerships (PPT, 3.7m)
Dr. Richard Rafes, President, East Central University
Dr. Diane Berty, Vice President for Student Development, East Central University
Dr. Delma Hall, Assistant Vice President for Academic Affairs, East Central University
The presenters discussed the effects of community partnerships on the recruiting and retention of students. The discussion highlighted the creation of venues that are attractive to students by forming community partnerships and opportunities that benefit the students, university and community. The presenters discussed a model of community partnerships that can be used by others to form like partnerships in their home communities.
Achieving the Dream: Using Data to Promote Student Success (PPT, 381k)
Dr. Jeanie Webb, Vice President for Student Affairs, Rose State College
Isabelle Billen, Director of Information Systems/Institutional Research, Rose State College
Lisa Kerr, Director of Student Success/Retention Initiatives, Rose State College
Linda Tucker, Coordinator of Math and Interim Associate Dean, Rose State College
Facilitator: Michelle Nutter, Student Affairs Specialist, Rose State College
In association with Achieving the Dream, a national initiative sponsored by the Lumina Foundation for Education, Rose State College has engaged in a data inquiry process intended to guide decision making processes to support student success. The purpose of the Achieving the Dream initiative is to integrate institutional policy and practices designed to reduce the achievement gaps among minorities and other underserved student populations. This presentation providec an overview regarding the data inquiry processes and initial involvements with the Achieving the Dream initiative and pending strategy implementation.
Going the Distance – Supporting Students from Beginning to End at a Regional University (PPT, 767k)
Bill Nowlin, Dean of Enrollment Management, Northeastern State University
Jeff Walker, Director of First-Year Experience and Enrollment Services, Northeastern State
University
Brian Searcy, Coordinator of Second Year Programs, Northeastern State University
How can regional universities in Oklahoma retain and better support students from beginning to end? This presenation focused on getting students to the first day of classes, first- and second-year initiatives, major declaration and faculty advisement, career services, graduation, and alumni relations.
