As Higher Education continues to face budgetary challenges in Oklahoma and across the nation, it is imperative that colleges and universities recruit more students. At Southeastern, our state funding is directly related to the total number of credit hours that our students take.

This fall, the number of first-time freshmen enrolled at Southeastern increased by 9% over fall 2015. While this is encouraging news, our overall student credit hour production for the entire university was down slightly (1.8%) over last fall.

Over the past several months, we have made every effort to increase our visibility and recruiting efforts among prospective students, their parents, and public school educators.

Our admissions and recruitment staff visits area schools in Oklahoma and Texas on a regular basis to get the word out about Southeastern. They attend college fairs, Friday night high school football games, and host events such as SE Live. Most recently, the admissions and recruitment office hosted a High School Counselors Breakfast/Workshop on campus. Thirty-four counselors attended and received pertinent information on admissions, services, scholarship opportunities, and academic programs offered to students.

Our faculty also plays a critical role in recruiting by attending college fairs, visiting high schools, participating in high school fine arts and academic contests on campus, and involvement in a variety of other events.

We have also produced television, radio, and social media commercials geared at reaching prospective students.

In my role as president, I have created a new program this year to assist in recruiting – the Public Schools Outreach Initiative. Once a month, I invite an area public school superintendent to lunch on campus so that we can discuss ways in which Southeastern can better serve students. In addition, I make monthly visits to public schools, again, to promote awareness and interest in the University.

With that being said, the most effective recruiter is you – the current Southeastern student. Your positive word-of-mouth comments about your experiences to your friends and families can make a huge impact on their decisions when it comes time to choose a college.

In summary, all of us at Southeastern play an important role in recruiting future students and I encourage you to do your part as the University strives to grow and prosper.