This is a rough time to be in higher education or working alongside it, which means it is also the right time to keep doing the work. I am going to reflect on “diversity,” a word that covers a potentially massively large territory. All of that space may not be under your purview depending on…Read more
Tag: Enrollment Management
Coherence, Cooperation and Cocktails
If you missed Coherence, Cooperation and Cocktails with the RHB team (our substitute for our annual Slate Summit gathering), you’re in luck. Here’s a recording and summary of the webinar where you’ll enjoy a great metaphor featuring a house (from the genius of Jess Ricker of Wellesley), a fair amount of talk about sports cars…Read more
What COVID-19 Can Do for Us
We collected snippets of our own perspectives, rather than write from a single point of view. Our collective ability to see from multiple vantage points is one of our strengths. We hope you will be inspired to look deeper to see which ideas, opportunities or new considerations you can unearth and employ at your own campus.
How to Evaluate Your Scenarios for the Future
Almost every client we speak with right now is in the midst of creating, evaluating or focusing on scenarios to describe the path forward when limitations are lifted post-pandemic. Without knowing specific dates, details about anticipated economic recovery or ongoing health-related behavioral guidelines, we’re hearing from campus administrators who are stymied. We’ve been advising that…Read more
Five Assurance Messages to Help Secure Your Class
I’ve made fun of how many emails and spot ads begin with “in these unprecedented/uncertain/challenging times,” and I’m fairly tired of hearing that expression. It’s time to move on to what’s next. Assuring your customers at this critical moment will help everyone do so. At this time of year, even when you’re not facing challenges…Read more
The Next Best Thing
I’m guessing you don’t need one more person telling you how to manage through the COVID-19 pandemic or the economic downturn. I’m also guessing you’re close to your wit’s end wondering exactly what to do right now. The unknowns may be keeping you up at night. The knowns may be upsetting your stomach. My inbox…Read more
Commencement in the Time of Pandemic
There’s been a lot of discussion about postponing commencements ceremonies or moving them online during the current pandemic. The need for rites of passage is a real one, one all humans have. And, really, our campuses need them, too. The need for communal activities marking important moments doesn’t stop even when we have to remain separated. We might even need them more than ever.
Four Tests You’re Taking Right Now
Talk about tests seems to be overtaking our conversations: the availability of COVID-19 tests, the time it takes to read them, the delivery options (drive-thru!) and the accuracy of the results. In higher ed, we’re talking about the value of standardized testing, the delay of testing and the consideration of optional submission of scores for…Read more
Looking Back to Move Forward
You may remember academic year 2008-09. If you worked in higher education then, you may recall that enrollment was gaining ground, money seemed abundant, recruitment and capital campaigns were robust, life was pretty good on campus. We were listening to concerns about a housing bubble bursting and watched banks begin to crumble. The more we…Read more
Reality Gone Virtual: Shifting Campus Events in Uncertain Times
As fears of coronavirus dominate the news cycle, universities across the country are forced to contend with many questions on how to operate in the face of a major public health event. Schools are opting to hold classes online, cancel activities, and otherwise limit large gatherings. But at the same time, those of us in…Read more