Traveling Coast to Coast with the SEC College Tour
The SEC goes on the road twice a year to tell the rest of the country what they’re missing.
It’s called the SEC College Tour, and it’s showing high school students why It Just Means More to be a part of the SEC.
Each spring and fall, enrollment and admissions officers from all 14 SEC universities participate in events designed to introduce students and school counselors to their institutions. It’s an opportunity for students and families who may have never considered SEC schools to learn just how much they have to offer.
The fall tour is specifically designed for school counselors, while the spring event welcomes students, their families, and counselors.
Dr. Suzanne McCray, Vice Provost for Enrollment and Dean of Admissions at the University of Arkansas, has been a part of this program since its inception in 2009. “Each university gets to make a special, brief presentation. We share materials, answer questions, and make new friends. We also collect information from students and counselors for future outreach,” McCray said.
So, what does the SEC College Tour road map look like? Well, it changes each year. In the past, stops have been made in California, Oregon, Washington, Illinois, Colorado, New York, and Connecticut. And in a few weeks, the SEC is headed to Virginia and Maryland. Regardless of the destination, the tour impacts lives outside of the traditional SEC footprint.
“We get great feedback from students and counselors indicating they have a better understanding of the SEC beyond athletics after the tour, and we have developed stronger recruiting holds in a number of these markets as well,” said Patrick Winter, Associate Vice President for Admissions and Enrollment Management at the University of Georgia. “Counselors often share that they are much more likely to recommend the universities of the SEC to their students after attending the SEC College Tour.”
Winter has seen the direct impact of the program, too. In the spring of 2014, he met a prospective student, Caroline Shearer, in San Diego. “I made it a point to follow up with her when I returned to Athens so I could connect her with faculty and representatives from the Odum School of Ecology here at UGA.” Winter went on to say Caroline was awarded the premier undergraduate UGA academic scholarship at the university, and she ultimately enrolled at Georgia.
Now, four years later, Caroline’s academic journey has flourished. She says it was hard to imagine moving across the country, but she’s never had a moment of regret. “I’ve pursued research, studied abroad, headed the state chapter of a national organization, and learned the calls of native frogs to help conduct population surveys. UGA has given me the opportunity to study at Oxford, backpack through Europe, meet Jane Goodall, go on safari in Tanzania, and be awarded a National Science Foundation grant to conduct research in Swaziland — and that was just in my first two years.”
Yes, you read that right. All of that was packed into just two years. Had it not been for the SEC College Tour, it’s possible that Shearer would have never crossed paths with the University of Georgia. But now, there’s a whole new family of Georgia fans in San Diego.
The pros of the Tour don’t stop there, though. Students who are perhaps more “native” to the SEC also benefit. By recruiting all over the country, It Just Means More walks of life, colorful stories, and unique perspectives — all in one classroom. Now that’s a perfect learning environment.
