Challenge V: Enrollment (See II. A-F)
Response:
Miller College has identified its primary service area as the four Michigan counties of Calhoun, Barry, Eaton, and Branch. Within this area, the largest segment of the population is Caucasian with African American and Hispanic being the next largest groups. Within the College’s largest service area (Battle Creek with a population of 52, 347), the Caucasian population is 71.7%, the African American population is 18.2% and the Hispanic population is 6.7%. The source for this data is provided by the US Census Bureau 2010. The following demographic data from the U.S. Census Bureau reflects the primary service areas for Barry, Branch, Eaton, and Calhoun Counties:
|
County |
Total Population |
Caucasian |
African American |
Other |
|
Barry |
59,576 |
58,075 |
301 |
1,200 |
|
Branch |
46,083 |
43,162 |
1,388 |
1,533 |
|
Calhoun |
137,112 |
114,147 |
14,836 |
8,129 |
|
Eaton |
108,002 |
95,599 |
6,288 |
6,115 |
|
Total |
350,773 |
310,983 |
22,813 |
16,977 |
|
% of Total Population |
|
88.66% |
6.50 % |
4.84% |
The enrollment pattern for the College is provided as an exhibit. In reviewing the document it is easy to see that the enrollment of African American and Hispanic students has increased. While we are not satisfied, we have made progress in achieving our goal of reflecting the service area of the College. A continuing challenge is that some students do not identify their ethnicity on the admission’s application.
Currently, 12% (Fall 2011) of our student populace identify with some type of minority status; this is up from 10.5% in fall 2010. The College Ethnicity Report for fall 2011 reflects:
Fall 2011 Ethnicity |
# students |
% of total |
|
Fall 2012 Ethnicity |
# students |
% of total |
|
African American |
31 |
8.4% |
|
African American |
35 |
9.5 |
|
American Indian/Alaskan Native |
1 |
0.3% |
|
American Indian/Alaskan Native |
1 |
0.5 |
|
Asian/Pacific Islander |
1 |
0.3% |
|
Asian/Pacific Islander |
1 |
0.3 |
|
Caucasian/Non-Hispanic |
239 |
65.1% |
|
Caucasian/Non-Hispanic |
223 |
60.8 |
|
Hispanic |
9 |
2.5% |
|
Hispanic |
7 |
1.9 |
|
Multi-Racial |
2 |
0.5% |
|
Multi-Racial |
4 |
1.1 |
|
Not Available/Unknown* |
84 |
22.9% |
|
Not Available/Unknown* |
96 |
26.2 |
|
Total |
367 |
100% |
|
Total |
367 |
100% |
* The category of Not Available/Unknown is a major concern that impacts the realistic break-down.
The Admissions Staff does ongoing evaluations of success in meeting recruiting goals, and uses this data to plan next steps for recruiting the student population.
The objective of the Miller College Admission Plan is to increase the total number of leads, prospects, applicants, and students at The Robert B. Miller College. The admission team will accomplish the task in accordance with the Strategic Plan, The Miller College Mission Statement, and the resources and personnel presently at Miller College. The target number (for 2011-12) was a 15% increase in students and credit hours taken over the previous academic year. A more realistic target of 2.5% increase is projected for the future based on current trends.
Goals have been set, and the implementation of this plan has begun.
The Admissions Staff does ongoing evaluations of success in meeting recruiting goals, and uses this data to plan next steps for recruiting a diverse student population.
Evidence:
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