Transcript Association of Catholic Admissions & Advancement

Connecticut Meeting
June 17, 2015
Today’s Agenda

8:45 am Opening Prayer & Welcome
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Introductions and Survey Responses
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9:15 am Breakout Session I: Priorities and Challenges
 Trends in Advancement
 Trends in Enrollment & Marketing
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10:15 am Break
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10:30 am Reporting Out
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11:00 am Breakout Session II: Priorities and Challenges
 Trends in Communications
 Annual Giving
 Retention
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12:00 pm Reporting Out:
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12:30 pm Lunch & Presentation
Who is in the room
Most effective marketing &
communications strategies
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Facebook
HSA Newsletter
web
Billboards, word of mouth
word of mouth
blog posts - driving traffic to our website events (i.e. open house)
Telecounseling, Emails, Facebook, Website, Face-to-Face
Word of mouth, social media.
Website/Internet/word of mouth
direct mail to targeted group, presence at local events
Community school events which lead in word of mouth. Website searches.
We show great improvement in social media
Direct mailing to CCD and Preschool families, articles of student happenings in local papers,
Social media and word of mouth. Having a table at a vendor/town event has had some feedback.
Combination of traditional print and social media.
Word of mouth
Social Media
Word of mouth!
Having community events at the school that give exposure to people of all ages
Most significant challenges in
Advancement
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Financial cost for families
Retention for Kindergarten
Screening of students - need to make easier and more welcoming
Establishing a planned giving initiative
Competing with top ranked public schools
Increasing applicant pool with families who can afford our tuition
The economy and the understanding of Catholic education
The landscape of Catholic education has changed. Schools are struggling with enrollment. In turn, struggling with budgets.
Spreading the word to new territories, convincing students to take the jump to come here (parents often love the school, but they
leave the decision for the students to make), competition from independent, non-Catholic schools
Increasing endowment, annual giving, volunteer base, engagement of alums
Time and Funds available
competing with magnet schools for enrollment, competing with other organizations for donations (including parish)
Getting the word out there about our school on a limited budget. Competing against other Catholic Schools.
Half of our student population comes from public school. It's difficult to fundraise with these folks.
competing with magnet school
Increasing Annual Fund.
Enrollment Management
Annual Giving from younger alumni
Many do not even attempt to visit because they think tuition is too much, breaking stigma, and annual giving
Major gifts
Declining enrollments, poor economy, demographic trends, rising costs
Lack of financial aid available; old facility; new blood needed
Getting people to understand the importance of giving and the value of the education we give.
Most important Advancement
priorities for next year
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Setting a budget for 2016-2017 school year
Focus on Pre-K to K retention
Increase out-of-town marketing efforts
Starting an advisory committee for planned giving; culling more info about our alumni
Increasing inquiry and applicant pool
Creating a parent admissions network
Growing Enrollment
Our school is celebrating its 100th Anniversary. I will be leading the year long celebration.
Keeping the experience personal, keeping students well informed and having fun, increasing the applicant pool, maintaining students throughout
the process, outreach to Hispanic families
increased engagement of parents and alumnae, fundraising goals increased
Scheduling - covering events, assisting Admissions and Development (Advancement)
Enrollment, raising money to expand certain programs to become more competitive
Executing school/community events on a limited budget and keeping our numbers up with enrollment and finding a way to retain children who are
moving out of town.
We are in the midst of a feasibility study and need to look to enter a campaign, which we haven't done for 14 years.
more recognition of the benefits of a Catholic School, and our school in particular. Pre-K
Raising more money than this year.
Enrollment
Annual Giving
Increasing enrollment
Increasing annual giving
meeting our matching challenge for HC Fund and transitioning a new President
marketing and personalization
Getting the word out that the school is responding to concerns and making changes without 'throwing anyone under the bus‘
Communication and more volunteer involvement
What are your most
successful events?
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walkathon, golf outing
Open Houses
planned giving workshop
shadow days
Spring open house (marketed to 5-7th graders)
Fall open house
Family oriented events
Shadow days, athletic meeting for incoming students, summer programs for athletics, test prep
Homecoming Weekend, networking receptions, social events for all constituents, freshmen fun
night, open house,,,,
For Marketing: Open House, Programs for Middle School Students, Shadow Days
local events (Shad Derby)
Alumni Dinners, Golf Tournaments, Wine Tasting events, Annual Church Feast.
Our auction is our flagship event, raising $150,000+ each year. We also run a successful open
house, grandparents day and legacy mass.
Education raffle and auction.
5K Road Race
Evening With Friends
Welcome Picnic to Kickoff a new year
Open House
Green & Gold Gala
Home Receptions, Open House
Friend-raisers! And our Open House is awesome
Wine Tasting, Ladies Luncheon
What new initiatives
have you tried?
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Changed format of Open House
Started Pre-K only Open House
Facebook push
Planned Giving is our newest initiative
adding bus routes to target areas/towns
Email marketing with an outside company
Since I am new, not much as of yet.
We have tried small programs where we invited 8th graders with certain interests to hang out with students during a
club meeting. This was mildly successful. We also tried a test prep program and had many students attend.
several in marketing strategies for admissions and then in our events and alumnae relations areas
having a presence at local events is new (1st time this year participated in town game show to raise money and
awareness)
Alumni reunions, Around the World Festivals, Newsletters, Advertisements. In school programs to help with attracting
new students as well as retaining existing ones.
We tried a scholarship reception for those who give to named scholarships and it was not well received.
going to local events / vendor fairs is new
Annual Fund drive geared to young alumnae. Using social media to raise funds.
Digital Billboards
Alumni events
Changing open house format
Legacy Receptions, CT Alumni Throwback Thursday, Volunteer Receptions and Wine Tasting
Home Receptions
Social events and trying to include the prospective students in everything - assume the sale!
None
Discontinuing anything?
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Shortening time of Open House
no
I am starting with a clean slate. Hoping to win back some past donors.
No. We just keep adding on and increasing my work load.
looking to restructure alumnae board...
We will likely not do a Fall Open House tours - minimal attendance
Not at this time. We are continuing to try everything we can.
We re-vamped a few years ago with a change in leadership and discontinued
events then.
No.
Less newspaper ads
I don't know
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less newspaper advertising
The letters to the local churches' religious ed - better to visit and bring
students with you
No
Has your strategy shifted,
how so?
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More flexible, more personal (trying to accommodate prospective families schedules to tour school)
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We have become more strategic in terms of advertising and trying to promote more
yes - more focused, more looking at R.O.I., increases in fundraising goals
more social media
Yes. We find that we cannot just sit back and wait for students to find us. We need to find them.
Absolutely - we are working much harder to raise fundraising dollars and our admission team is
working much harder to capture students.
More and more use of social media.
More outreach in the community
More visibility with our students
This is my first year
Yes, trying to engage more people and getting more people involved in as many advancement
aspects as possible
Definitely focusing more effort on social media
Yes - I have made a huge effort to make the whole admissions process more personal - we are
'competing' with large organizations and need to show that we are where your students will be
watched over and treated as the individual they are
Not in my role
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What are you hoping to take
home from today?
new ideas
Best practices from other schools re: retention of Pre-K: also, how other schools do their screening
networking; learning about planned giving initiatives at other institutions.
Creating a Parent Admissions Network
Marketing to full pay families
Strategies for converting accepted students to enrolled students
Increasing the inquiry and applicant pool
Strategies for competing with top ranked public schools
New strategies for enrollment growth specifically enhancing the open house and visit days.
Ideas are where to take my department.
New ideas and insights into marketing in the digital age, networking with other schools from around
the state,
meeting people/networking, listening to thoughts and ideas
New ideas and perspectives, new resources and connections, positive energy
New refreshing ideas and techniques that we may try to better our school.
I would like to hear ideas from other schools that face the reality that there are fewer students
coming from Catholic feeder schools.
New and broader ideas for reaching our target market. How to better compete, particularly with 'free'
schools (public, magnet).
New ideas and renewed energy and enthusiasm for task.
Any new initiatives in Marketing and Enrollment Management from the Admissions Side.
How to increase Annual Giving, Wealth Screening from the Advancement side.
Ways to improve enrollment and ways of increasing annual giving
Fresh ideas
Collaboration, a few new ideas or tactics
Ideas, ideas, ideas!!!
Lunch Presenter:
Ed Brymer, Chief, Middletown Police (Retired)
 Chief Ed Brymer retired as Chief of the Middletown Police
Department in 2008. Prior to that he served as the Deputy Chief
of the East Hartford Police Department. Before that he had a long
career with the Connecticut State Police Department, retiring in
1991 with the rank of Lieutenant after 28 years of service.
 Chief Brymer serves on many boards; including the Board of
Directors at Xavier High School and the Chiefs of Police
Association.
 He received his Bachelor's degree (magna cum laude) and
Master's degrees from the University of Hartford. He is married to
Atty. Gerri Roberts and has 2 children and 3 grandchildren. His
granddaughter Sabrina graduated from the University of St.
Joseph in 2014 with a BSW. His grandson, Jeff, is a 2011
graduate of Xavier High School and just received his Bachelor's
degree from Salve Regina University in Newport.
ACAAP
www.acaap.net
 Save the dates!
ACAAP Fall Conference
Thursday, October 13, 2015
Holy Cross College
 Spring Conference: Thursday, March 10, 2016