Spring Enrollment On the Rise
The Whittier College Enrollment team is actively working to boost enrollment. At 859 students for Fall 2023, the College still prides itself on being a Hispanic serving institution, with an attempt to “stay steady,” as per Interim President Dillon’s words, for sustainable enrollment.
Following the COVID-19 pandemic and the sports program cancellation, the College has seen an active drop in enrollment. But now, Interim Vice President of Enrollment Ken Woods reveals the College has seen a 35 percent increase, as exact numbers for the spring semester are a “moving target.”
Woods also alludes to the short-range plan President Dillon implemented or sustainable future. Among this plan is enrollment, as one of the goals for the school is to “grow the student body,” says Woods. He continues, “Just as you know from the past, we’ve had a rough couple of years. Getting rid of a couple sports really hurt our enrollment, so my goal is to bring in a class of about 405 students, [and we are] doing it several different ways.”
Among these tactics are several outreach programs towards local high schools that involve inviting counselors on campus and partaking in local college fairs. These
attempts have proven to be the most successful for Woods. “Where we [are aiming] is in our backyard — about a 25-mile radius — which yields [potential] students at a higher rate because they’re local,” he states.
The school has partnered up with several organizations, including Carnegie’s Student Search Team and the Association of Independent California College Universities, to bring in high school counselors on campus.
The enrollment team has also implemented an “instant enrollment” method where potential students are interviewed by a member of the admissions team and are immediately admitted into the College, after showing transcripts and necessary documentation. This method, according to Woods, has been proven “effective.” The admissions team has also taken to advertising the College as an HSI (Hispanic Serving Institution), with attempts to attract a diverse student population. Additionally, Woods mentions participating in Black Expo[sition] Fairs curated for “underrepresented students.”
Another aspect of the short-range plan is trying to reach students internationally. According to Woods, Ethiopia had the highest number of admitted students this last academic year, as an international enrollment team is used to advertise the College to other prospective students.
In regards to low enrollment, a survey posted on the Quaker Campus Instagram indicated that the majority of students who participated were aware of Whittier’s enrollment status, hearing the news either from the Los Angeles Times and Whittier Daily News or through talk around campus.
Several students have noticed the school’s efforts to increase enrollment. Third-year transfer, Richard Kastl-Givens, believes the school is currently in an active phase of “rebuilding and rebranding.” Kastl-Givens states, “I have noticed that the College is actively exploring various methods to promote and market the school to potential new students.”
If Kastle-Givens had known about Whittier’s enrollment status prior to transferring, he believes this would not have impacted their decision. Fellow transfer student Lexis Brattain asserts the opposite, stating that low enrollment would have most likely negatively affected her decision.
The majority of students involved in the survey answered that they have seen an improvement in student life and engagement.
But despite everything, Woods is hopeful, acknowledging how vibrant the College community has become since the enrollment decline.
Several students share similar sentiments, with the majority of students involved in the survey answering that they have seen an improvement in student life and engagement.
“Having Kristine Dillon as our interim president was brilliant,” Woods says. “I am optimistic for Whittier.”
Photo Courtesy of Nune Papikyan.
