Evan Vitale Consulting: UT tries to steady enrollment

Latest post from Evan Vitale Consulting -

Published: Thursday, 10/1/2015

BY VANESSA McCRAY
BLADE STAFF WRITER

UT president Sharon Gaber believes her investment in a consulting firm to help with enrollment will pay dividends.
THE BLADE/JEREMY WADSWORTH Enlarge | Buy This Photo

The University of Toledo will pay a consulting firm more than $430,000 to create a plan to reverse a yearslong enrollment slide.

UT President Sharon Gaber signed an 18-month contract for $431,333, plus travel expenses, with consultants Ruffalo Noel Levitz of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, according to documents released in response to The Blade’s public-records request.

Hiring a consultant to develop a strategic plan is among the first steps Ms. Gaber has taken to grow enrollment — among her top priorities since starting the job July 1.

This fall, the university lost students for the fifth consecutive year, resulting in an $11.5 million budget shortfall. This year’s budget anticipated an enrollment increase, but a September headcount revealed a 301 student decline to 20,325, down from a high of 23,085 students in 2010.

Ms. Gaber is still determining how UT will counter that deficit. She plans to speak to the faculty senate about options and prefers not to make across-the-board cuts.

“I want people to understand, ‘Here’s where we are. Here’s how we’re going to get out of it,’” she said. “I am optimistic that we won’t be in this situation in the future.”

Ruffalo Noel Levitz will help redesign UT’s website and provide marketing and recruitment consulting, among other services that aim to boost undergraduate and graduate numbers.

“It’s getting outside perspective to help lead that area,” said Ms. Gaber, who worked with the firm in a previous role at Auburn University. “It’s an investment that should reap dividends in the future.”

The consultant’s arrival comes amid other enrollment office changes. The firm will work with a newly named interim administrator, James Mager, who will oversee enrollment efforts and help find someone to fill the position permanently.

Last month, Cam Cruickshank, the former vice president for enrollment management and online education, and the president mutually agreed he would leave his post. He remains on UT’s payroll as a consultant through February.

Now semiretired and living in Westerville, Ohio, Mr. Mager was a Noel Levitz consultant from 2002 to 2010 and worked at Ohio State University. Terms of his UT contract have yet to be finalized. He is expected to hold the part-time position until a successor is hired or through mid-May.

Consultants will provide short-term guidance to improve recruitment for next year and a three-to-five year enrollment plan, he said.

“I wouldn’t have taken this position if I didn’t see a very strong possibility of good things happening,” he said.

Universities often seek consulting services when an administration turns over because it’s a good time to get people engaged and new leaders can have an easier time bringing about changes, said Rob Baird, a Ruffalo Noel Levitz senior vice president.

Increased competition and demographic changes mean colleges face “incredible pressures” that have made hiring consultants more prevalent, he said. An outside firm can focus on goals, not internal relationships, he said.

“We are working for the institution, and we are working for the institutional good. And thus, we don’t have favorites. I don’t make a recommendation because I like or dislike you,” Mr. Baird said.

Helping create a new website and enhance the university’s online presence through search engine optimization will be a key part of the consultant’s services. A university’s website is a core marketing and recruitment tool, he said.

Bowling Green State University signed a three-year, $330,000 agreement with Noel Levitz in 2013 to review admissions, enrollment, and scholarships. The university’s fall enrollment count of 19,172 students represents its first enrollment gain since 2010. Spokesman Dave Kielmeyer said the strategies the firm helped BGSU develop contributed to its recent success.

To avoid a conflict of interest, Mr. Baird said the firm will assign different teams to work with UT and BGSU — fierce football foes separated by about 25 miles. Ruffalo Noel Levitz has completed the bulk of its Bowling Green work, and won’t provide certain services to the two competing institutions at the same time, he said.

Contact Vanessa McCray at: vmccray@theblade.com or 419-724-6065, or on Twitter @vanmccray.

Source