Tip:
Highlight text to annotate it
X
>> [Noah DeSmit]: Welcome to the GRCC podcast.
This is episode 2,
"Enrollment, a conversation with Eric Mullen."
(music)
Welcome to the GRCC podcast.
This is Noah DeSmit-- I'm from Media Technologies.
If you've never been to the podcast before
and you don't know what it is,
it features conversations with people all over GRCC--
people working at GRCC at different departments,
exploring how different departments work
and how the college does its thing.
And with me today is Eric Mullen from Enrollment.
Thanks for taking the time...
>> [Eric Mullen]: Thanks for having me.
>> [Noah]: ...out of your busy schedule.
You're quite a busy dude. (both laughing)
When I was trying to schedule this,
I was doing a busy search and looking at your schedule,
and it's just, like, solid.
There's barely little pockets of availability
two, three weeks out.
>> (Eric): Yeah, I can feel a little nutty
at times, but... >> (Noah): Yeah.
>> [Eric]: And sometimes, when you have positions where you--
it was what we were kind of joking about before we started,
just having meetings all the time.
You have to actually block off time...
>> [Noah]: To actually do your work.
>> [Eric]: Yes, exactly!
So I probably do about 6 to 8 hours every week
blocked off just for desk time so I can focus on things
that are due and I need some focus time on.
>> [Noah]: Yeah, I do that, too.
I work in Media Technologies--
I shoot videos and then I edit them.
And if I don't schedule time to edit those videos--
>> [Eric]: You'll be shooting videos all the time.
>> [Noah]: Yeah, I'll just have all this footage backed up
that never gets edited, so I can understand that.
But are you from Grand Rapids?
Are you a Grand Rapids guy?
>> [Eric]: Yeah, kind of born and raised
and can't get away. >> (Noah laughing).
>> [Eric]: Probably grew up four blocks from here.
I went to Grand Rapids Central High School,
and thought I was going to leave.
>> [Noah]: Like literally four blocks from this building?
>> [Eric]: Yup, yup.
>> [Noah]: We're in the Main Building, by the way,
where your office is and the enrollment center is.
So four blocks from--
>> [Eric]: Yeah, just up Fountain street,
and then over a block.
>> [Noah]: Wow.
>> [Eric]: Yeah, and I know Robert Bliss
would cringe at this--
the work he does to try to enliven the city,
but we affectionately did refer to it
as "Bland Rapids" growing up.
>> [Noah]: Well, it's way different.
>> [Eric]: Yeah, it was, it was.
And I thought, "I'm gonna get out of here!
"And I'm gonna go someplace!"
And then, I went to Aquinas College.
(both laughing)
And then, I started working down on here,
and I've just stayed.
And the city has certainly transformed and evolved,
and it's been a fun place to work to be a part of that
here at the college. >> [Noah]: Right.
Now, do you think that it happens, though, with people
who are born in cities and grow up in cities,
they have this sort of automatic dislike
for the city they grew up in?
Even if it's cool?
For example, my wife grew up here in Grand Rapids.
I grew up in a small town kind of outside Kalamazoo.
So Grand Rapids, to me, was always like the "big city"
that was cool and had things to do and the place to go to.
And she's always like, "Ugh, Grand Rapids."
I don't know if there's this weird thing
when people grow up in a city,
no matter how cool it is,
they have this kind of "Ugh."
>> [Eric]: Yeah, it's probably because it's so familiar to you.
>> [Noah]: They just know it so well.
>> [Eric]: Yeah, and sometimes,
even when you distance yourself from it,
and don't realize some of the new things that are happening,
and I could see that happening to you.
And then, of course, it's always "the grass is always greener
"on the other side."
If you want to live someplace else,
you'd create a fondness and a more interest in the city
at that point.
>> [Noah]: Yeah, did you do any extracurricular activities
in high school?
>> [Eric]: Yeah, I was very involved in high school.
And it was fun to be-- even at the time,
it wasn't a lot of recreation or culture happening--
cultural activities happening downtown.
There wasn't the arts, there wasn't the restaurant scene,
there wasn't the museums as it is now,
but it was still fun to go to school downtown.
And Central-- at the time, I was very involved with sports,
I was involved with student government, involved in drama.
You name it, I was trying to get my--
>> [Noah]: What sport did you play?
>> [Eric]: I played football, I swam, and I ran track.
>> [Noah]: Wow, so you did quite a bit.
>> [Eric]: Yeah, kept me out of trouble.
That was kind of the way to go. (laughing)
>> [Noah]: Yeah, did you have a lot of opportunities
to get in trouble?
>> [Eric]: You know, Grand Rapids Central--
and you know, I still have a strong affinity
for the public school system here,
and I'm really kind of excited about the role that I have
to reach out to those populations
to help them consider going to college.
And a lot of times, college isn't on the radar screen
for young people
who are in lower socioeconomic status situations,
who come from single-family households,
who are doing what they can to kind of get by
and help their families.
So I'm really excited to be in the position I am now
to help reach out to those populations,
work with young people, see that this is attainable,
help them try to navigate earlier on
what they need to do to become college-ready.
So I think, unfortunately,
there are a lot of opportunities
to kind of get derailed in high school.
Fortunately, I invested myself in activities and events
that had a lot of positive reciprocity to it.
But I saw a lot of my friends, unfortunately,
go the wrong way and didn't complete school,
some of them ended up joining the military,
for instance, and found positive pathways there.
But a lot of people get stuck in those positions
and they stay there.
I think that's what so motivating about working here
is we can present a new pathway for folks.
>> [Noah]: Yeah.
And then, you went to college right down the street, too,
at Aquinas.
>> [Eric]: Yeah, I really enjoyed that experience.
It's quite a little bit of a gem here.
A lot of people don't even realize it's sitting there,
nestled in over between a residential neighborhood--
>> [Noah]: It's a really cool campus.
>> [Eric]: Yeah, a beautiful campus, great faculty,
had a tremendous experience there.
And then, for my involvements there,
I primarily got involved in service learning programs.
I ended up taking a job here in service learning.
>> [Noah]: Oh, really-- when you were an undergrad?
>> [Eric]: Yeah, so I just graduated in May.
I started interviewing-- I want to say in May-- at GRCC.
I was working a summer camp at the time.
I came back for a second interview, and fortunately,
got the job and started in August.
>> [Noah]: What did you start as?
>> [Eric]: I think it was service learning assistant
at the time.
>> [Noah]: Oh, so you weren't doing a serving learning project
with Aquinas.
You were working in the Service Learning Office.
>> [Eric]: No, I was doing service learning programming
at Aquinas.
Eric Bridge is the coordinator over there.
He developed a really strong service learning program.
It was kind of a benchmark in the state.
Being a student leader involved with him helped me
see the constructs of that
and how to successfully manage those programs.
So I got to come over to GRCC,
who was just starting up their program when I graduated,
and helped be a part of launching the program here.
>> [Noah]: Yeah-- now, Aquinas is a private--
it's a Catholic school, right?
>> [Eric]: Yeah, Dominican. >> [Noah]: Dominican, yeah.
I went to-- for one semester-- my first semester of undergrad--
I went to a private university,
but I think it was much more strict than Aquinas,
but it's called Cedarville University in Ohio.
Yeah, it's in the middle of nowhere in Ohio,
and I went there for one semester,
and the guys that I become friends with were okay,
but everything about the atmosphere and sort of the rules
and the climate and the requirements that--
like they required you to go to chapel.
>> [Eric]: Oh, okay.
>> [Noah]: And there were a lot of silly rules.
And the atmosphere was just super funky to me.
>> [Eric]: Hmm.
>> [Noah]: Did you come across any of--
>> [Eric]: No, not at all.
I think there's something about the Dominican sisters
who are so strongly affiliated with Aquinas
that actually put a very worldly viewpoint
on the education there.
I think that's why things like service learning--
I mean, they certainly promoted and wanted us
to become actively engaged in the Catholic Church there,
but it was an open community
where students who were not Catholic still felt welcome...
>> [Noah]: Sure.
>> [Eric]: Still felt very challenged,
I think we were encouraged to look at the core aspects
of the Catholic Church and the Dominican perspective.
A lot of that was around social justice issues,
and that's why I think service learning
was such a popular and focused activity and program there.
So I really enjoyed it,
and the only reference I had to a Catholic environment
was my dad.
>> [Noah]: So were you brought up Catholic?
>> [Eric]: No, no... But my dad was.
And he told me the horror stories of nuns wielding rulers
and such... >> (Noah laughing).
>> [Eric]: And so, my first class I had with a sister,
I actually was somewhat nervous to find out how strict it was.
But again, it was the most worldly,
the most global perspective on things--
yeah, I didn't anticipate that, and it was so refreshing.
>> [Noah]: That's really cool.
>> [Eric]: Yeah, I just found the faculty, in general, there
to be outstanding.
Really available, supportive,
but yet very much challenge you to grow and learn
and pushed you, so that was great.
>> [Noah]: Yeah, I think that's totally how it should be.
I think there is a similar institution to the one
I went to here in town-- I think--
and I think it's kinda bogus.
I like that idea that even though you hold on
to your values, you're still welcoming
and loving and grounded,
so that's cool that Aquinas is able to do that.
So you finished your undergrad at Aquinas,
and you were working here in Service Learning.
>> [Eric]: Yup, worked here for a few years
and actually a job, a Student Activities Director
opened at Aquinas,
so I applied for that, and went back there,
and had a phenomenal experience.
It was really exciting to go back to my alma mater
and be a part of developing
the student involvement community there.
We got involved with renovating a historic space there--
the Carriage House--
and turned it into a coffeehouse
and a music, poetry, comedy space
for students to do programming.
We really had a great time-- I stayed there for three years.
But while I was there, it kind of cemented
my interest of working at a community college.
Having been here for a couple of years--
>> [Noah]: How come? >> [Eric]: You know,
I think it goes back to where I came from.
You know, having gone to Central High School
and seeing so many of my peers not take that next step
but knowing that they had the potential,
they had the capacity to be successful,
but they just had so many other variables and factors
that were working against them doing those things
in their lives that I wanted to come back to a place
where I felt I could impact that.
And so, although I had a fabulous time at Aquinas,
I felt like I really kind of developed by professional focus
and my skill set.
I was hungry to get back here
to work with the student population,
and I had the opportunity of Tina Hoxie,
who was the former Student Activities Director here,
was promoted to Dean of Student Affairs,
and her position opened up.
>> [Noah]: I didn't know that she was in Student Activities.
>> [Eric]: Actually, she had the Student Activities job
at Aquinas many years before-- I'm just following her.
>> [Noah]: Just following her! (both laughing)
>> [Eric]: So whenever she gets promoted, I--
>> [Noah]: I kinda do that, too.
My first job out of college,
I replaced this guy named Mike Colby--
I replaced him doing TV commercials up at Fox station,
and then Mike worked here, and I actually came over here to WOOD.
I worked at WOOD TV for a couple of years...
>> [Eric]: Okay.
>> [Noah]: But then, Mike left this position here at GRCC,
so I took his position again for the second time.
>> (Eric laughing).
>> [Noah]: So I'm kinda following Mike around,
as well-- it's funny.
>> [Eric]: Yeah, very similar experience.
And so, I came back here and started working
in Student Activities, and again was having a great experience.
I think it's much more challenging to engage
our student population outside of the classroom
because we don't-- obviously-- have a residential campus,
we don't have a central hub for student involvement
with a student union, per se.
And our students are very diverse.
A lot of them are part-time students
and they're working jobs and they have dependents and...
You know, so there's challenges inherent to that,
but I think we've found very creative ways
to engage students and get them involved
and have them form a relationship
with the institution, aside from just the classroom,
which is the most principle and focused and important place.
But I think we've found ways to creatively
and innovatively get students connected.
At that time, I was working at my master's from Grand Valley
in Higher Ed Leadership,
and really enjoyed that experience.
Grand Valley does a great job training students
to work in the higher ed profession.
We've been taking tons of interns from that program
to help us with orientation and other programs.
And I like it, too, because I'm such a huge proponent
of the community college.
A lot of times in those prep curriculums at the master's level,
they don't really explore the community college,
but there are a lot of great jobs out there
and a lot of great emerging professionals
who have the right skills and dispositions
to come and work in a community college setting.
>> [Noah]: Did you find when you were doing the curriculum
at Grand Valley, your master's, that there wasn't a lot of ex--
>> [Eric]: There wasn't, actually, and I kind of always dubbed myself
"the community college guy."
Because they would get talking and I would always raise my hand
and I'm like, "Well, the community college... >> (Noah laughing).
>> [Eric]: "The community college..."
>> [Noah]: Because you were working here at the time
when you were doing those classes?
>> [Eric]: Yup. >> [Noah]: Were you working
at Aquinas when you were working on some of that, too?
>> [Eric]: No, I started a teaching master's program
initially, but decided I really wanted to remain in higher ed
and I wanted to work in community college,
so I switched gears and went into a master's
of higher ed program.
I have formed a really good relationship, though,
with the program head at Grand Valley, Dr. Jay Cooper.
And I said to him, "Hey, you're missing a huge component
"of the community college environment."
And they have since developed a course,
and I have actually come on as adjunct
and taught that course for them this summer.
>> [Noah]: Oh, really-- oh, that's cool.
>> [Eric]: Yeah, and that was a lot of fun to see my feedback
kind of had some impact on their curriculum design
and the offerings that they made.
>> [Noah]: That's cool-- a lot of good discussions
and feedback from students in regards to the course?
>> [Eric]: Absolutely.
I find that generally the students who come to that class,
they have very limited exposure to community college.
But you get a few in there who had gone previously
or had some exposure,
so that kind of really brings the discussion to life,
that folks who have had direct experiences--
either being a student in community college
or working for one-- can give really concrete examples
and connect it to what people are doing
in the four-year setting, per se.
And then, a lot of our professionals, I've noticed,
that are going back to finish their master's
or get their master's,
so I've had some of my colleagues in that class,
which is kind of an interesting dynamic.
But again, I'm of the mindset that a facilitated exploration
and dialogue and collaborative approach
is the best for learning,
and so having my colleagues in the class
has never been an issue.
I just want to tap into their expertise and their passion
and enthusiasm for working with the student population.
>> [Noah]: Yeah.
Yeah, that's really cool that you're able to do that.
I think community college is obviously so important
to the community.
And I didn't really realize that--
I'm actually am a student of GRCC.
I graduated from here, got my BA at Western,
and I got my master's at Ferris just recently.
But even when I was at GRCC, and sometime after,
I always liked community college because I thought,
"Well, it can give people second chances,
"it can provide opportunities," like you were saying earlier,
for people who wouldn't normally have those opportunities,
but it wasn't until I started working here a couple years ago
that I realized that it's not just a positive impact
on the students.
As a positive impact on this entire area because of the--
because the education that our community members receive,
they're able to better their lives,
and thus able to better the area and city
and community as a whole. >> [Eric]: Yup.
Our portfolio of training and academic offerings
is so expansive.
There's some challenges trying to keep all of those balls
in the air, but I think that does--
kind of your point-- it creates such a wide net of impact
to our community, on the economy,
on the workforce,
on the improvement of lives for people who get degrees.
You know, it's a pretty remarkable place to be.
>> [Noah]: So not-- okay, so you were working
in Student Activities Office here, and then what happened?
>> [Eric]: Well, that's kind of unique.
I never saw myself working in an enrollment focus.
But I had been doing Student Life for 10 years,
and I still enjoyed it,
but sometimes you get to point where you're ready
for a new venue, a new challenge,
and our Admissions Director took a job
out east in the DC area.
And Tina Hoxie asked me if I'd be willing
to serve as the Interim Director of Admissions.
And they weren't looking to just necessarily replace
that position,
but they were also looking to possibly reorganize
the portfolio of programs that were around enrollment
and admissions.
And within a very short period of time--
actually our Financial Aid Director left,
which previously had reported through our Business
and Finance Unit, and they were a collective--
it was Financial Aid and Cashiers as one group.
When that happened,
they actually split apart those two units.
Cashiers remained with Business and Finance,
and Financial Aid came over into the Student Affairs group.
And then, Tina and Provost Gely took an opportunity
to reorganize those and saw the value of combining Admissions,
Orientation, Enrollment, Testing,
and Financial Aid onto one group.
And so, we're still going through the process right now
to fully integrate that into an enrollment management model.
So I'm excited to see what's going to happen
in the next 6 to 12 months
where we really actualize that,
and the team members across Financial Aid and Admissions,
Enrollment, do a lot of shared responsibilities
for helping students, a lot of cross-training--
so when students come in,
a person's gonna help them navigate through the many things
that they need to do to become a student here.
I think it's going to help our students be more successful,
it's going to help make our work more efficient,
I think we'll have a greater reach.
So that's the direction we're going.
So while all that happened, Tina and others presented
the opportunity for me to come into a position to oversee that.
And I was excited and very humbled
to be given that opportunity.
And so, here we are now with the Enrollment Management Unit
moving forward.
>> [Noah]: So the reorganization of putting Financial Aid,
Admissions, Enrollment, and all of that under one unit,
under one roof, you as director of Enroll--
er, what's your official title-- is it Director of Enrollment?
>> [Eric]: Associate Dean of Enrollment Management.
>> [Noah]: You're kind of the dude that looks over all that,
essentially. >> [Eric]: (laughing) Yup.
>> [Noah]: Because when I was coming into this,
I was thinking just Enrollment,
but it's actually all of those-- do all of those things
kind of essentially equate to Enrollment?
>> [Eric]: And more, I would say.
You know, when a student walks in our door
at the Enrollment Center, Financial Aid,
Counseling and Career Center--
you know, over in the Student Center--
they don't come in with an isolated question.
All things that they have related to signing up
for classes, picking their major.
All those things are connected.
You know, "How am I going to pay for that?
"What are my next steps-- When do a transfer?
"How do I complete this degree?"
So I think, from our mindset,
is we're trying to organize ourselves
so when a student comes in the door,
were not part and parceling their experience
but we're trying to find out more holistically
what are the things that they need to do to be successful,
and respond much more proactively.
And helping students anticipate what their next steps are, too.
A lot of times they just don't know.
We have so many first-generation college students,
students who don't come from backgrounds
or homes where they have enthusiastic support
to be successful in higher education.
You know, people may really care about them
and want them to do well, but that doesn't always equate
to like, "I know how to do this."
And so, a lot of the ways we have to be responsive
to that situation,
and I think that this alignment allows a student come in
and ask a question, but we know, through other questions,
we did ask them and clarify and help them take those next steps.
>> [Noah]: Right.
>> [Eric]: And so, even though we talked about Admissions
and Orientation and Enrollment
and Financial Aid being combined together,
we're finding ways to connect with other colleagues
in the institution in that same breath.
So we currently have a counselor-- Fatima Nieves--
is working out of the enrollment center.
So as a student comes in and has specific advising questions,
we don't say, "Well, you gotta walk across the street
"and go here."
We're able to refer them right on the spot to Fatima
to get that question answered,
and I think that makes us a much stronger group
in responding to students and helping them
go through this process,
and anticipating what their needs are going to be.
And I think we're going to grow that.
We have great partnerships with the Records Office
around transfer credits and course equivalencies.
We have a relationship with the Veterans Affairs Officer,
Janice Holton,
and we want to continually integrate those services
into what we are doing.
So again, we're not passing a student off.
We're finding a way to surround them while they're here
and really help them. >> [Noah]: Right.
Now, there's a bit of a state trend that's...
there's a decline in enrollment. >> [Eric]: Mmm-hmm.
>> [Noah]: Statewide, across community colleges.
Are there ideas or theories about why that is?
>> [Eric]: Yeah, as you can imagine,
there's not one factor that is driving that.
There certainly are some variables
that I think are having a larger impact on that right now.
You know, right when the recession started,
and through that--
you'll see that historically and nationally,
when an economy goes downwards in terms of home values,
unemployment rates go up, people are losing wages
for various reasons-- >> Like it did in 2008.
>> Yup, when that happens, community colleges historically
see an uptick in their enrollment.
And primarily around returning adult-age students.
You know, non-traditional-age students.
So not you're 18-, 19-year-olds, just graduated from high school,
but folks who have been out in the workforce for a while
who now have to change gears, now need new training,
need new credentials.
And it's usually combined with a federal
and/or state injection of resources
around that type of work.
So we saw all that, and we saw our numbers go up,
primarily as a result of that dynamic.
And then, we're seeing the inverse of that
happening right now.
So although I think we can all agree that the economy
is not where it could or should be right now, it's improved--
>> [Noah]: Yeah, it's better.
>> [Eric]: And we're seeing our average age get younger.
And in the winter, for instance--
we just finished in a winter enrollment cycle--
we don't see as many traditional-age students
because they usually start in the fall.
We have a higher concentration in the winter.
And we saw a real decrease in enrollment
and it was with that population.
So the fact that the economy is improved--
the funds that were out there
to help people get retrained are now used up and gone.
>> [Noah]: Sure.
>> [Eric]: And also on the traditional-age side,
there was a little bubble there.
Kind of the echo of the Baby Boomers coming through,
and so that population has decreased as well.
That does make for a much more competitive marketplace
around higher education.
You know, we do have a lot of great institutions
in the region, and that trend,
although it may have hit us a little bit harder
because we're seeing that in the state and nationally
with community colleges,
enrollment is down overall for the most part.
So I think the fact that we're also switching
to this enrollment management model
will make us more competitive,
more assertive in the marketplace.
Because a lot of our competitors will walk students
through every piece of that process,
and we hadn't been doing that before.
I mean, we didn't have to recruit students per se.
With the recession, they were banging down our doors.
It was all we could do to just try to help them
get through the process.
But we're gonna have to be much more nimble
and out there in our communities,
showing students why we're such a great value
and how can we can help them accomplish their goals
and objectives.
>> [Noah]: Yeah, there is this weird thing, too...
I think an average student, just coming out of high school--
when I think about myself just coming out of high school
and all of my friends,
I think there's this weird thing where even though
it totally might be better for me
to go to a community college--
it's going to be the same quality education
and, in a lot of cases-- (laughing)
I grew up in Kalamazoo,
so there was Kalamazoo Valley Community College
and Western were kind of the big ones,
and Kalamazoo College as well.
In a lot of cases, for a lot of the classes at KVCC,
a lot of Western professors, who taught the exact same class
at Western, taught those as an adjunct at KVCC as well.
So you're getting the same quality education,
the same quality instructors, it's way cheaper,
and you're going to save money
because if you can stay at home or whatever,
you don't have to spend money living on campus
or in a dorm room.
Even though it might be way better for you
in all those regards, there's this weird thing.
Something about-- >> [Eric]: Stigma, stereotype.
>> [Noah]: Yeah.
>> [Eric]: Yeah, it's a "lesser route" for students.
They don't feel it's as prestigious or--
>> [Noah]: Or "I don't get to get my college experience"
or whatever.
>> [Eric]: And I think, in a lot of ways,
that's radically changing.
You know, having been a student who,
even though I went to a college that was five or six blocks
from where I grew up... (laughing)
I went and lived on campus.
And that's a remarkable experience.
Don't get me wrong, for students who are in the right place
as an investment that they can make--
that's not going to burden them with too much debt
after they complete their higher education--
if you can do that, I encourage people.
But you're right, I think there's a lot of students who,
for a myriad of reasons,
we probably are the better fit for them
and they are going to steer away from us
because of that stigma that it's "just like high school.
"It's not going to be the same level of quality."
>> [Noah]: Right. >> [Eric]: And to the point
that you may already, I wholeheartedly agree.
Surprise from a guy who does recruiting
for a community college... (both chuckling)
but we have faculty who are amazing in their fields,
who are working at other four-year institutions,
and because they love to teach,
they come here and teach as well.
And that's the other thing about us.
We are a teaching institution.
We are not a teaching and research institution
or a research institution.
Our faculty are here to teach.
Now, that doesn't mean that they aren't current in their fields.
They're in that field because they're passionate about that
and they present at conferences and they do research.
>> [Noah]: Most likely, they're working--
especially the adjunct, they're working
in that field day-to-day. >> [Eric]: Yeah, exactly,
so you have a real life person coming in to talk to you
about current trends and issues
and how the rubber hits the road.
Unfortunately, our students don't really own
or recognize that until they leave
and they say, "I miss that.
"I miss that kind of real-world environment.
"I miss how easy it was for me to connect with and talk to
"and meet with my faculty...
"and I got to larger institutions
"and I became a number,
"or I became a student in a lecture hall of 75, 100, 200,"
depending on where you go.
And it's hard to explain to students that,
the return on investment that they have with us
because our tuition is so much more affordable.
You know, if you compare us to the top-10 regional institutions
where our students transfer to-- so we look at, you know,
"Where do our students transfer out of here?"
And we look at those top-10 institutions.
If you compare our tuition, as a full-time student
taking 15 credits, on average, you'll save $11,000 a year.
That's a lot of money!
So if you did two full years with us, that's $22,000
that didn't either come out of your pocket,
or you didn't finance through a student loan.
And in the likelihood of the climate now,
you're probably gonna take out a couple student loans
to complete your education,
but you're going to graduate with a loan payment
of $175 a month
or $400, $500 a month.
That's a big difference.
And it's a complicated and nuanced sell,
and details to convey to students,
especially when they have that stigma
of not wanting to go there.
>> [Noah]: Now, you are saying that this college--
kind of a little bit of a glimpse into the real world--
it feels much more real. >> [Eric]: Mmm-hmm.
>> [Noah]: And I think you're right.
I think because of the diverse set of students that we have,
and diverse set of faculty,
there is kind of a realness here
that is not at those other institutions,
where a lot of the kids are sort of the same
as far as their demographics
and where they come from and their perceptions.
And do you think that sometimes we don't embrace
that realness enough?
Like because we think that we are giving into that stigma
of being a "lesser than," even though it's more real.
I don't know-- do you kinda know what I'm trying to say?
>> [Eric]: Yeah, I do, and...
I think we can pretty readily agree
that although there's diversity in our community,
it's still very segmented and segregated.
You know, if you look at the makeup and composition
of our neighborhoods-- you know, African-Americans, Hispanics,
whites, and others--
live in concentrated areas and enclaves
onto themselves.
And if you think about that, this is probably the one place
in West Michigan where they truly come together
on a daily basis,
and live, learn, teach, engage in a way that I think students
who come through here get past some of the perhaps stereotypes,
prejudices they may hold, just naivete about other people,
and realize that, "When I work and live and learn
"in these communities where it is diverse, it's better."
And I think that is a strength of ours.
And I think that we may not leverage that.
And also, to the point that we are diverse--
and I think we would all recognize that we have room
to grow in terms of helping various student populations
be successful and have the best representation
of diversity on our employee base
that is mirrored with our student population--
we see room to grow there,
and I think we have an institutional commitment to that.
There is still strength there for us,
and I think there's a value to that.
Because our students aren't leaving here
and going out and working necessarily
in homogenous areas.
Our world has changed.
We recognize that this is a global society,
and it doesn't just mean like,
"I get a job working in international relations,"
but I might be in a conference call with people from Mexico
or Europe or wherever,
or I need to work with people who have relocated to this area
that I'd don't know about their culture
or their background,
and that influences and has a factor in how people get along.
And so, I think students-- more that they can engage
in the learning communities that elevate that,
the more successful they're going to be in the real world.
>> [Noah]: We've just about run out of time,
but I think people might be interested to know--
okay, enrollment-- what are some things
that we do to try and boost enrollment?
What are some of those things that we do?
>> [Eric]: Well, I think for a long time, we--
I kinda mentioned this earlier--
that we didn't really do a lot of active recruiting, per se,
so we are changing our dynamics
so we are much more focused on outreach
and recruitment initiatives,
working with our Communication Department on active marketing
and branding to our community,
instituting systems like a customer relations management software,
so when a student makes a contact with us,
we maintain that relationship with them,
we monitor that.
If they haven't been in touch with us for a while,
the system prompt us to reach back out to them.
And the other thing that we want to become more skilled at--
and there's such huge potential here,
it's just a matter of putting the pieces in place--
is selling all the goods we have.
I don't want to distill down
what we do to a products per se,
but when you look across the amazing amount
of academic programs that we have, training opportunities,
the easy, easy pathways that we provide for students
to go to a four-year institution
and save a tremendous amount of money,
we have to showcase that. >> [Noah]: Yeah.
>> [Eric]: So, we're starting to grow our relationships
with faculty and departments who are doing a great job
of keeping their courses and content relevant,
that those classes do transfer,
so that when our students go places, like--
"You're from GRCC business?"
or "You're from GRCC biology student?
"Awesome.
"The students who came before you did great.
"I'm so glad to have you here."
That's our reputation out there.
We have to put that together and showcase that
to the greater public and to prospective students.
And I just think that it's just a matter of putting those pieces
in place because that capacity,
that amazing product that we have there, is already there.
It's just a matter-- I hate to say "sell," because I'm saying,
"I'm selling our education," but we have to do that.
>> [Noah]: Yeah, we do.
>> [Eric]: And that's the steps that we're taking right now.
So we have an open house coming up,
and we haven't really had a ton of faculty involvement,
but I think that everybody realizes
that enrollment is down,
and there is this genuine interest
to start partnering with us,
and finding ways that we can help better tell their stories
to students and their opportunities
and their curriculum and what they offer.
So I'm really excited the direction we're going right now.
>> [Noah]: Cool, man... me, too.
Well, thanks for coming on the podcast and taking the time.
>> [Eric]: Thanks for having me.
I appreciate it. >> [Noah]: Yeah, thanks.
(music)