Kenneth L. Hoyt Phd, President the Higher Education Practice, LLC

Kenneth L. Hoyt PhD, President The Higher Education Practice, LLC

; 310 6943

SCUP49 Pittsburgh/2014

OAB provides your institution with never before available, effective tools to use in making crucial academic decisions needed to stay competitive. In the context of your institutional mission, quality, market potential, cost and revenue,

–Examines the long-term viability of each of your majors

–Identifies opportunities for growth or expansion

–Identifies areas where costs may need to be contained or reduced

–Provides knowledge you may use to redirect resources where needed most to increase enrollment, maximize the value of the curriculum and strengthen institutional viability

OAB utilizes market potential data (inquires, applicants, admitted students, enrolled students and graduates) to measure demand for each of your programs, student credit hours (SCH) generated by programs as a proxy for revenues, and the direct (faculty and departmental) costsfor teaching each program. It may be applied to all academic program offerings - undergraduate, graduate and non-traditional

Here is an example of a sample school’s demand for programs by state.

Here are some examples of the results of OAB for this sample school.

And here are some strategies the sample school may wish to consider based on the results of its OAB analysis.

•Enhance the Liberal Arts A

‒History, English, and Sociology perform well in the market among current inquiries and are very attractive to current students

‒They are among our highest quality programs

‒They are modest cost in terms of cost/SCH

‒Strategy = increase inquiries through targeted purchases of prospect names and other methods, especially web-based

•Enhance the Liberal Arts B & Strengthen Regional/National Reputation

‒Biology is a relatively expensive program but we have invested in its quality

‒It is our second strongest w/respect to national/regional demand

‒However, we do not do well in converting that demand

‒Strategy = increase inquiries and improve application & enrollment rates & improve internal retention

•Reduce Costs by Eliminating Weak, Expensive Programs

‒Fashion Design and Computer Information Systems (CIS) are both relatively high cost yet poorly performing programs

‒Neither is central to our mission

‒CIS has aging faculty nearing retirement age and early retirement is an option

‒Competition for Fashion Design in nearby, large city is proving to be insurmountable

‒Strategy = phase out both programs in next three years and reallocate funds

•Build on Strength in Elementary Education

‒Elementary Education is among our highest quality programs

‒It performs well among current inquiries and is among our most selective programs

‒It has modest cost/SCH

‒Strategy = grow program by increasing inquiries through targeted purchases of prospect names and other methods (especially web-based) while maintaining selectivity

•Grow Profitable Programs in Criminal Justice and Business

‒Both programs are relatively low cost with respect to cost/SCH

‒They have the highest number of current inquiries

‒But both perform below the median with respect to application and yield rates as well as internal retention rates

‒Strategy = improve application and yield rates & invest in faculty development (particularly for adjuncts) to improve quality

OAB takes into account:

•The cost of each major based on faculty salary and benefit information and department operating budget

•In calculating the costs for full time faculty, consideration is given for each course a faculty member teaches

•For faculty members who teach in more than one department, this course-level analysis of costs allows you to apportion a faculty member’s compensation to the appropriate program

•The costs associated with courses that are primarily general education courses are treated separately from the costs of courses that are primarily or exclusively for majors

•Compensated faculty time devoted to non-teaching activities (e.g. department chair, release time, etc.) is also taken into account

•Specific information on stipends for adjunct faculty is taken into account

OAB yields:

•Evidence needed to support tough institutional decisions

•Coordination between admissions/recruiting and program needs

•Increased revenue from targeted growth

•Decreased costs in carefully identified areas

MissionThe Higher Education Practice, LLC (HEP) utilizes powerful analytical tools and draws together experienced, independent higher education practitioners/consultants dedicated to helping independent college/university presidents better manage scarce resources and implement strategic solutions, especially in turbulent economic times. HEP utilizes collaborative strategic planning processes, benchmarking/market research, financial tools, Optimizing Academic Balance (OAB) analysis, retention/graduation analysis, enrollment/financial aid leveraging predictive modeling, advancement audits, non-traditional academic program audits and president’s staff evaluations to seamlessly enable college/university presidents to meet or establish institutional objectives.

Strategic PlanningHEP works with college/university presidents to evaluate or update existing strategic plans and develop new data-driven strategic plans using a collaborative campus participation process to engage the entire community and link the strategic plan to a multi-year budget process and the president’s staff goals and evaluations.

Reshaping the Curriculum to Grow theBottom Line/OAB ProcessHEPworks with college/university presidents, chief academic officers, and chief financial officers using the Optimizing Academic Balance (OAB) analysis process to provide a thorough examination of the academic program including market potential, cost and revenue for all college/university academic program offerings, including undergraduate, non-traditional and graduate. Using the HEP OAB analysis system, an institution is able to make critical strategic decisions in light of its mission, quality, market potential, cost and revenue.

Retention and Graduation AnalysisHEP works with college/university presidents, institutional research, counseling, first year experience, and student services staff to understand institution-specific retention and attrition trends and craft a best practice plan to improve student fit and graduation rates using retention factor analysis, and pre and post-matriculation analytical processes. HEP supports the college/university’s retention program by the early prediction of at-risk students and by providing quantitative answers to why students leave during the first and second year. HEP, working with college/university personnel, uses best practices and controllable institutional retention factors to improve student retention and graduation.