11/8/2024 EMSS Division Communication

EMSS Team Members:

Happy Friday, EMSS team, and I for one am looking forward to a long weekend with rest, relaxation, and reflection. Thanks for all you have done this week to support students and colleagues who have been impacted by the recent election, and I encourage everyone to do something over this holiday weekend purely for joy.

As your time allows, please read the below updates related to campus and division efforts.

URPC Divisional Updates

Find out what happened with budget reductions after the University Resources & Planning Committee (URPC) made their recommendations to the President last spring. Fall Divisional Updates will take place during URPC’s regular meeting time from 1:00-2:30 pm and are tentatively scheduled as follows: November 15 - Academic Affairs, Enrollment Management & Student Success; December 6 - Advancement, Athletics. A campus notice with Zoom link will go out prior to each session.

National Enrollment Climate

We have talked about our continued enrollment growth, in light of the broader enrollment landscape. I wanted to share with you this recently released National Student Clearinghouse update, which summarizes early results from fall enrollment in the U.S. While enrollment overall increased nationally, the big news is that this fall, freshman enrollment declined 5% across the nation. Four-year public institutions, like ours, actually declined 8.5% in freshman enrollment since last year.  Our campus saw a slight dip in freshman numbers, but nothing of this magnitude, and also managed to significantly increase our new, upper-division transfer enrollment and our retention of current students. This means we are outperforming many of our peers, thanks to the strategic work that is underway.

Accolades

Congratulations to the Admissions team and all campus partners for a successful Fall Preview on Nov. 2, which successfully welcomed a large number of prospective students and families, significantly increasing last year’s turnout. Special thanks also to the Facilities and Maintenance team, who made magic happen with swift cleanup after early morning vandalism that targeted Forbes Gym, where Preview check-in was happening, and Siemens Hall, which we know is in the hub of campus, where tours were departing from the Quad. Our resiliency was on display last weekend, as we carried on and ensured our visitors had the experience they deserved, despite the unexpected chaos.

A successful American Indian College Motivation Day welcomed a number of native students to campus yesterday.  Congratulations to the Admissions planners and extensivel ist of campus partners, including EOP, ITEPP, Food Sovereignty Lab, and Native American Studies, as well as others, who successfully planned this signature event.

Many thanks to the members of the CAPS, Dean of Students, Associated Students and Student Life teams who planned phenomenal post-election engagement for our students.

Events

Making College Happen: This outreach event will be held on campus Friday, November 15. Designed for local 10th graders, this event intends to give participants important tools and resources to help prepare them for college and careers. Some students may have attended the 8th grade I’ve Been Admitted to College event, and this event is intentionally constructed to be the next step in the college-going process. Organized in partnership with the Humboldt County Office of Education, Making College Happen is a series of three events open to 10th graders in Humboldt or Del Norte County.

Thankful Event: Join us in the J Dining Hall for this annual celebration that highlights all our campus dining has to offer. FREE to all students, faculty and staff; Tuesday, November 19, 5pm to 9pm. In celebration of the season, Humboldt Dining invites everyone for a free meal with all the season's best foods!

Apple Appreciation Sale: Don’t miss this event at The Campus Store, and save an additional 10% off the 8% educational discount from November 18-22. Pre-orders available.

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend. As always, if you have items for inclusion in this division communication, share them with me via e-mail, or with the EMSS Leadership Team member in your area.

Take care of yourselves and each other,

Chrissy Holliday

Vice President, EMSS

Cal Poly Humboldt