The Office of Admission kicked off the school year by discussing new ways to attract students of color to the University, after enrollment numbers showed a decline in student of color matriculation.
Of particular concern is the number of African-American matriculants this year, which has steadily decreased from 68 matriculants for the Class of 2004 to just 39 matriculants for the Class of 2008.
The two-hour session at 200 Church St. on Sept. 8 included student testimonials and new recruitment initiatives, as well as an appeal for constructive criticism about the tactics already used for recruiting.
“We wanted to get that on the table,” said Senior Associate Dean of Admission Greg Pyke. He unveiled the numbers to the group.
Emphasizing the importance the issue, all ten heads of the Admission Office showed up. They reviewed the new profile of the Class of 2008 and encouraged returning and new students to have a stake in attracting diverse candidates.
This is the first time the Office of Admission has sponsored a meeting so early in the school year, before much of the staff tours the country from mid-September to mid-October recruiting students from high school.
“We made a commitment to each other to do everything we could this year to represent you, engage you, and involve you,” said Dean of Admission Nancy Meislahn the crowd of around 60 students.
Several new initiatives designed to attract more students of color will go into effect this year. They include a new financial aid publication for prospective students and a financial aid calculator for parents to estimate how much they can expect to receive from the school.
The Office of Admission has also made a commitment to double the number of students the school flies in for visits, a practice they have found enormously effective in attracting students, according to Associate Dean of Admission Clifford Thornton.
In the past few years, the University has fallen behind in the increasingly difficult task of finding diverse candidates after being a leader in diversity since 1965. Thornton, who focuses on recruiting students of color, said that while the number of black applicants to college has remained somewhat constant, more colleges are heavily recruiting them.
“You should be mindful we’re not working in a vacuum,” he told students. “Now we’re running behind the pack.”
Thornton stressed the importance of students participating in the recruitment process.
“In some ways we’re starting all over again,” he said. “But we’re in a better position because we have a reputation and we have you guys here.”
Thornton also pointed out that the Office of Admission’s most successful recruitment programs for students of color, Minority Pre-Frosh Weekend, began as a student project.
“In the end so much of what we do relies on what you do,” he said.
Student testimonials from two upperclassmen and two freshmen got the discussion going.
“I met a lot of you and I was really happy to see you come,” said Katiria Calderon ’05
Many students chimed in with their own experiences, revealing a variety of recruitment tactics, from phone calls to free train tickets for programs in which Wesleyan students return to their alma maters to recruit applicants.
While most of the feedback was positive, Meislahn said the staff was as interested in negative aspects. Students suggested more materials geared towards parents of students of color and contact people for parents who spoke languages other than English.
Other students were disappointed by the lack of participation from non-students of color. Meislahn agreed that she would have liked to see a more representative crowd.
“One of the reasons [the admission staff] is here is that each of us is responsible for students of color recruitment,” Meishlahn said. “This is so critical to everyone.”
Libeth Morales ’08, who spoke at the meeting about her college visiting experiences, said the greater disappointment came from the lack of involvement of freshmen.
“The fact that only a few of them spoke was disheartening because the admission officers need to know,” she said.
Forms were passed out at the end of the session for students to fill out their name and any recruitment activities they would be interested in doing.
“As far as I know, I’m the only black male from Philadelphia,” said Mike Bolds ’08. “I think I have the responsibility to the people in my community back home,”
The next student of color recruitment meeting will be at noon at the McKelvey Room on Friday, Sept. 24.
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