CMU Board of Trustees committees discuss ups and downs in enrollment

Academic and Student Affairs Committee

The first committee meeting of the day focused primarily on enrollment online and in-person, as well as giving a progress update on what student affairs had accomplished over the winter break and into the spring semester.

Kaleb Patrick, the interim vice president of Innovation and Online, and Sarah Marshall, the chairperson of the Department of Counseling, Educational Leadership & Higher Education, announced a new collaboration between CMU Online and Lansing Community College called Central Bound. 

Marshall said the program allows for students to dual-enroll at LCC and CMU, or for them to get an associates at LCC and then be guaranteed admission to CMU. She said the program guarantees credit transfer between the institution, and that financial aid can be applied to both institutions.

“From the moment they apply, they’re admitted to both institutions,” Marshall said. “So they’ll start to already have an affinity for CMU and start to see themselves as part of our community.”

Patrick said that they’re hoping to expand the program beyond LCC and to form partnerships with other Michigan community colleges. He also said Innovation and Online is talking with partners in hopes to create a program that allows undergraduate certificates under a specific major to “stack” and form a full degree. 

For example, that means hypothetically obtaining certificates like the InSciTe Certificate and the Engineering Management Certificate under the College of Science and Engineering could count towards the completion of a bachelor's degree in engineering. 

“It follows the marginal gain theory, which is where you give people a little bit of a win along the way,” Patrick said. “So instead of coming in and looking at it as ‘I’ve got six years to get 90 credits,’ they look at it as 12 credit increments in order to get there.”

Next, the Vice President of Student Recruitment and Retention Jennifer Daehamers gave an update on CMU’s enrollment. There were many key findings she shared, including but not limited to:

• An increase in spring semester enrollment by roughly 200 students, or 1.59%,
• A decrease in applications, especially from international students who saw a 21% decrease due to stricter visa requirements and immediate transfer-outs to other colleges, 
• New recruitment opportunities through program webinars, community college partnerships, and more,
• A rise in non-consumption, or high school graduates choosing not to attend college after graduation, among families making over $100,000 annually,
• The announcement of financial aid packages, which will be coming out next week for incoming freshmen, and
• Discussions of looking for outside vendors to assist with recruitment and retention efforts.

“(The potential vendors) are being asked to deliver a five-year plan, knowing that we’ll probably have to make adjustments as we go along because things change so quickly in this realm,” Daehamers said. “We’re not totally disregarding all the great work we have here, but we’ll be partnering with whichever consultant we choose to help us identify … reasonable enrollment goals.”

Finally, Interim Vice President of Student Affairs Stan Shingles shared a progress report on the work that had been done within the last few months with Student Affairs. He spoke about increased occupancy in residence halls and increased attendance at diversity events, such as the Martin Luther King Jr. Community Brunch that saw over 800 attendees. Shingles also spoke at length about the work done over the winter break by the Student Government Association and Residence Life, who ensured students living on campus had access to food, groceries and transportation as needed.

“To say it was successful would be an understatement,” he said.

Shingles also discussed pitfalls the department was seeing, such as an increase in “severe” CMU Cares reports and the loneliness epidemic reported by Surgeon General Vivek Murthy, and ways CMU hopes to decrease it for students through events and opportunities in the residence halls.

Finance and Facilities Committee

Mary Moran Hill and Jennifer Cotter, the vice presidents of Finance and Administrative Services and University Advancement, respectively, went over six key topics that would be discussed in length and voted on at the full Board of Trustee meeting on Feb. 13. 

The items were as follows:

• Reviewing collective bargaining agreements with unions,
• Discussing a master service agreement with MyMichigan Health, so they can have a building close to campus and work in collaboration with the Foust Hall medical services,
• Discussing four new endowments, or scholarships, 
• Criteria changes for the Phi Kappa Tau Scholarship,
• A naming opportunity for the College of Medicine in honor of a donor, and
• The opportunity to build a fiber optic internet connection between CMU’s Biological Research Station on Beaver Island and Charlevoix.

The latter attracted the most interest from trustees, who asked about the specifics of the project and the possible timeline for construction. Christopher Tycner, the associate dean for the College of Engineering, said he is in direct contact with the construction company and answered questions from trustees. 

He said if approved, construction would start in April or May and not take longer than 12 months to complete. He explained that drilling would start half a mile inland, and the fiber optic line would then run underneath Lake Michigan for about 20 miles before reaching the lakebed in Charlevoix.

Trustees-Faculty Liaison Committee

Cheryl Barden, American Sign Language (ASL) instructor at CMU, presented on an ASL593 course. It is a study abroad to Bahamas, which provides CMU students with an opportunity to “learn by doing” and work with deaf children in real world. 

Barden said students spend a week during spring break in a school for deaf kids in Nassau, Bahamas. This year, about 19 students and two faculty members are going.

“They're there for a week trying to make an impact,” Barden said. “Our students leave in tears at the end of the week. ... It's really hard to get them on that plane ... they don't want to go home.” 

Eden Elzerman, CMU graduate student studying audiology who went on this trip, said it left a meaningful impact on her and she made many connections. 

For example, she said she received her sign name -- an important piece of deaf culture and that usually has something to do with a recipient's personality trait. 

“It really showed how much I learned in the classroom, I was able to apply it,” she said. “It also showed how big the impact you can make on people.” 

This is the third year that ASL study abroad is taking place in Bahamas. Before, this course took students to Jamaica, but Barden said she had to find another location because crime rates rose. Still, she wanted to offer students similar experiences.  

“We were introducing students to things that they were not used to, not flushable toilets, rainwater collection for showers, carrying buckets ... and praying for rain,” Barden said.  

When at the school, Barden said CMU students play with kids and teach them activities, such as dancing and friendship bracelet making. 

“They're immersed in hands-on teaching activities,” Barden said. “(There are) really great opportunities, building relationships with the staff. ... (The staff) were tired. They need help. They need resources. And the students were just a breath of fresh air.” 

Trustees-Student Liaison Committee

CMU Residence Housing Association (RHA), Student Government Association (SGA) and Program Board presented their updates and upcoming events to the Board of Trustees at the Trustees-Student Liaison Committee meeting.  

Brittnie Vithanage, RHA advisor, said the association started its recruitment for the next academic year. 

“(It’s) an opportunity to get connected and experience some leadership, as well as develop some different skills and connections that way," Vithanage said.

Similarly, SGA Vice President Aashka Barot said the SGA’s election committee is already working on the executive board election for the next academic year.  

The electoral process will begin by the first week of March, and the new board is set to be elected by mid-April, Barot said.  

As for events, Vithanage said RHA is organizing Bundle Up and Stock Up. Students can bring non-perishable food that will be donated to the Student Food Pantry, and in exchange, they will get some winter essentials such as hats, gloves, scarves and socks, Vithanage said.

Bundle Up and Stock Up will take place from Feb. 16 till Feb. 18 in Towers, South and East dorms.  

SGA President Carolina Hernandez Ruiz  said that CMU will have its second TEDx conference in April, and students who are interested in sharing their speeches are encouraged to apply at the SGA website. This year’s theme is “Navigating the Unknown,” Hernandez Ruiz said.     

Kat Allmacher, president of Program Board, announced another campus event that is upcoming this semester – Maroonzie, an annual spring carnival. It will take place from 1 to 4 p.m. on May 2 in the parking lot between Finch Fieldhouse and Health Professions building.  

Allmacher said Maroonzie will have inflatables, 30-foot slide, different games and a dunk tank.