CMU 2010

Progress Report - August 2007

Board of Trustees

At the Board of Trustees meeting scheduled for September, representatives will provide an annual report of the progress CMU 2010 has experienced over the last fiscal year.  This comprehensive report is intended to update the Board on topics such as how CMU 2010 is sharing the Vision with the campus community, articulation of Key Performance Indicators, alignment and support of our priorities, evaluation and continuous improvement to the planning process, and future plans.    

KPIs

During the last few weeks, discussion within the Communications Committee has been taking place to recommend targets for the Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). In the initial stages, the development of a KPI Status Report has become vital, and will be used to both voice the recommended targets and provide justifications based on data-driven evidence.  The report, in a draft form, is anticipated to be distributed for Priority Committee Chairs during late August as the first step in goal setting for CMU 2010 KPIs.

Spotlight on Maximizing Financial Aid to Achieve Enrollment Goals


 The cost of attendance is influencing college selection as never before. Educational costs increase annually for entering freshman, while federal and state financial aid funds decline. The economic situation for many families in Michigan continues to be tenuous. Cost of attendance and aid packages influence initial enrollment decisions and significantly impact student retention.  Based on this concern, we are pleased to provide you with a highlight of the planning goals from Mike Owens, Associate Dean of Students and Director of Scholarships and Financial Aid (below).

2010 funding has been provided to contract with Noel-Levitz (a nationally known consultant in the area of enrollment management) for the purpose of analyzing and making recommendations concerning CMU sponsored financial aid.

 In the fall of 2006, staff from CMU began working closely with Noel-Levitz to provide data on regularly admitted undergraduate students from the fall of 2005 and 2006. The data includes basic academic information and all known sources of financial aid that each student was offered.

 Students have been grouped by their level of financial need and academic ability levels. This will provide CMU with an updated view of how students’ ability to pay and willingness to pay influence their enrollment decisions.

 The analysis will assist with designing the most cost effective financial aid packaging parameters to achieve enrollment goals.  Additional benefits allow CMU to compute the impact of alternative awarding strategies on enrollment, institutional financial aid expenditures, net revenues and discount rate. By learning the precise effect of tuition changes on institutional aid, net revenue, and the discount rate, CMU will be in a better position to utilize its limited financial aid resources for achieving enrollment outcomes.

 A retention analysis is also a part of the Noel-Levitz consultation. A subset of data from a previous entering class is used to determine the impact of academic preparation, finances, and other factors on student retention to support CMU enrollment goals.

 To ensure the validity of the research, the student data must be complete and accurate. The conversion to the new Campus Management student information system has added some additional challenges and created some delay in the results. The project is expected to be completed early this fall in time to impact decisions on financial aid packaging and enrollment for fall of 2008 and beyond.