That was the verdict Jennifer DeHaemers, vice president of student recruitment and retention, had for members of the Board of Trustees’ Academic and Student Affairs Committee Monday afternoon. The hour-long session was one of three committees that met ahead of Tuesday’s action session.

“We’re at a very good spot at this point in time, and holding steady with our deposits,” DeHaemers said.

As of Monday morning, some 1,652 incoming freshmen had enrolled for fall 2024 classes, a 62.3 percent increase over the 1,018 at this time last year, university data shows.

Moreover, the university received 2,283 deposits from new freshmen students for the fall 2024 semester, up from 2,031 at this time last year. Additionally, 2,094 incoming freshmen had registered for orientation as of Monday, compared to 1,802 for the same time period last year.

DeHaemers told the board that part of the strong showing is a result of front-end loading orientation sessions throughout June; but the numbers were also looking up when it came to transfer students.

Some 340 incoming transfers have enrolled for the fall semester, compared to 333 for the same time frame last year, DeHaemers said. 519 have placed deposits – an 8.6 percent increase from last year’s 478 – and 488 signed up for an orientation session as of Monday, compared to the 428 who had for the same time in 2023.

“We’re in a great spot,” DeHaemers said. “All indications are we will see a third year of increases in freshmen and transfer students.”

Central Michigan University has experienced a steady slide in enrollment over the past decade, with 2023’s 14,423 fall head count representing a 10-year low, university data show.

But DeHaemers and the board were optimistic that the arrow could start pointing the other direction as soon as this fall. Total fall enrollment counts – 11,544 students as of Monday morning – are up nearly 4.5 percent and registered credit hours are up 3.68 percent compared to this time last year, DeHaemers told the board.

Furthermore, despite a rough rollout at the federal level, students are securing scholarships, grants and loans through the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), DeHaemers said. As of Monday, some 13,982 students had received their financial aid packets for the coming academic year, she said, and they range from undergraduate students to doctoral candidates.

“We’re ahead of schedule,” she said. “That’s almost 3,900 more students receiving aid packages this year, versus last.”

A vision for the future

The committee also received an update on the 20-year academic visioning plan from Provost and Executive Vice President Nancy Mathews. For more than a year, she has spearheaded a project designed to lay out a long-term academic vision for the university.

The vision team included more than 170 faculty and staff and took into consideration 11,170 survey responses, Mathews said, to build what she described as “a wave” for the campus.

The six-point plan – dubbed an academic strategic agenda – was guided by three main goals: developing engaged and adaptive leaders and learners; revitalizing the university community; and enabling technology for the future, according to university documentation.

To do that, the strategy involves:

Creating a design that provides lifelong learning pathways and platforms
Transforming curriculum, scholarship and research
Expanding transformative learning experiences to make sure there is equitable access to courses, learning experiences and support systems
Leveraging a sense of place to make CMU a learning and cultural resources hub
Building an inclusive and accessible support system and resources for all students and campus community members
Investing in technology for lifelong learning and sustained revitalization of the community.

“Obviously you and the team … spent a great deal of time on the vision,” Trustee Edward Plawecki said. “My only comment though is a strategic vision is good but of no value without a strategic operational plan.”

Mathews agreed, saying that the tactical plan is already in the works and under development.

“Long before I arrived on campus, people had a vision,” she said. “They didn’t have it codified into where they wanted it to go in 20 years, but they knew it had to be changing.”

What’s in a name?

Also Monday, the Policy and Bylaws Committee took a closer look at proposed changes to the amounts needed to secure a named endowment for scholarships, faculty positions and programs, among others.

When a philanthropist wants to leave a named endowment, they must donate a minimum amount to the university. The institution, operating through the Advancement Office, takes those funds and invests them, and the earnings are applied toward supporting the student, faculty or organization that benefits from the funds.

Mary Hill, vice president of finance and administrative services and CMU chief financial officer, told the committee the current guaranteed return on investment is 4.25 percent.

But as inflation, tuition and other rates have increased, so has the minimum amount needed to support the work the endowment is funding.

To that end, the university is recommending increasing the minimum investment at the front end. Under the proposed changes, the minimum investment would be:

$50,000 for an endowed faculty position, up from $25,000
$30,000 for an endowed program, up from $25,000
$35,000 for an endowed scholarship, up from $25,000.

Central Michigan University Vice President for Advancement Jennifer Cotter pointed to the $10,000 increase in the minimum scholarship donation to explain the reasoning.

When advancement receives a new named scholarship, she said, 4.75 percent of the amount is set aside from the get-go. Of that, 4.25 goes to the scholarship and the remainder to help cover administrative costs.

With inflation and rising costs to attend the university, advancement recommends a minimum scholarship award of $1,500, Cotter said, so at 4.25 percent guaranteed rate of return, the $35,000 is the bare minimum to ensure the scholarship is properly covered right out the gate.

“Right now, a $25,000 endowment is, maybe in its first year, just shy of $900 at its very best,” she said. “To move it $35,000, we’re getting closer.

“When we talk to our donors, it’s not that we ask what the minimum is, we ask ‘What kind of impact do you want to make?’”

If an endowment performs at a higher rate fo return, the profits would be reinvested into the principal scholarship fund, Hill said, thereby growing the coffers for future students.

“We’re bumping the minimum up because it seems like the cost of attending is rising faster than the minimum return,” Trustee Todd Anson said.

The full board will take up the minimums as part of Tuesday’s consent agenda. The session is scheduled for 11:30 a.m. in the President’s Conference Room on the third floor of the Bovee University Center.