Saturday, December 31, 2011

A College President’s Christmas List

(The State Journal, December 2011 - by Scott D. Miller)

Although we college presidents are often expected to play Santa to our multiple constituents, we also have holiday wishes of our own. Mindful that the Grinch is often lurking on or near our campuses, I submit my Christmas list in hopes that Bethany College and West Virginia’s other higher education institutions will be rewarded for being good this year….

First on any college president’s list is an improved economic outlook. Despite the best efforts of enrollment management professionals and availability of privately funded scholarships, continued financial challenges make it difficult for many families to plan for college. Add to that the uncertainty surrounding federal student aid, and the accompanying perception that a four-year undergraduate education may be out of reach financially.

The good news is that consumer confidence is edging back up, and that foretells a slightly more optimistic enrollment outlook for next fall. All things considered, Bethany and many other private colleges are doing well in maintaining enrollment. But admissions-sensitive colleges (and that includes most private institutions) will be wise to remain fiscally conservative as they approach their new budget years in 2012.

Second on my list is the availability of discretionary funds for institutional giving. For college presidents and their advancement officers, gifts are necessary—not optional. But for consumers, even our loyal alumni and friends, a rollercoaster stock market and higher prices can drive down current gifts and delay campaign pledge commitments. Numbers for 2010 giving tell the story: According to the Council for Aid to Education, America’s colleges and universities raised $28 billion in 2010; however, with adjustment for inflation, giving actually declined 0.6 percent.

If institutions ride along with a boost in retail sales during the current holiday season, traditionally a strong time for end-of-year annual gifts to colleges, those numbers may improve for 2011. Meanwhile, it behooves colleges and universities to strengthen their cases for funding and to take no donor or gift for granted.

Third, Santa, will you help us identify new funding programs for international education? The integration of international markets and fast-moving political, economic, and social developments on all continents compel our students to be more engaged than ever in the complex issues that will confront them as global citizens. Bethany College has expanded overseas collaborations, increased on-campus programming for multinational cultural enrichment, and launched a series of initiatives with International Relief & Development, an agency in Arlington, VA, headed by Bethany alumnus and trustee Dr. Arthur B. Keys, Jr. Our first campus Light Up Night presented holiday greetings from students representing various faiths.

Educational institutions must do much more programmatically to make students not only aware of the world, but proactive in it. Their future careers will benefit from the ability to process and understand events and trends with global significance.

Fourth under my holiday tree would be some assistance in preserving the liberal arts by marketing them effectively. Central to a president’s job at a liberal arts college is leading the dialogue about the importance of lifelong, integrated, humanities-enriched education; safeguarding the teaching and funding of such subjects; inspiring strategic planning and institutional programs that recognize and preserve the value of the humanities, and finding innovative ways to communicate their importance to the general public.

Our nation will benefit from sound policy-making and responsible stewardship engendered by the broad perspectives of history and other humanities-based study. Answers to complex, interrelated economic, political, and environmental issues cannot come from a single perspective. Subjects in the humanities, with their emphasis on research, analysis, and communication, invite and permit multiple perspectives for practical problem-solving for the good of all.

Finally, I wish for all colleges and universities—large and small, public and private—the ability to serve our students well amid the myriad social changes and challenges finding their way to our campus doors. Although higher education offers much to many, it cannot be all things to everyone. Today’s college students benefit from technology, counseling, elaborate student centers, new residence halls, career services, and other campus support systems unavailable to previous generations. Living and learning on a college campus are not necessarily easier than they once were, but they are more efficiently accomplished.

It is still up to the student to make the most of his or her collegiate experience, and to take full advantage of the tools of modern education through disciplined study habits and the maturity that comes from responsible social behavior.

I realize this is a tall order, Santa, but our campus resources—like the Grinch’s heart—are sometimes two sizes too small. My fellow college presidents and I would be grateful for the assistance. Our record of success speaks for itself; for again this year, we have been, for the most part, very good at what we do.


#     #     #

Dr. Scott D. Miller is President and M.M. Cochran Professor of Leadership Studies at Bethany College. A graduate of West Virginia Wesleyan College, he has served as president of three private liberal arts colleges during the past 21 years.


Tuesday, December 27, 2011

Bethany Trivia


What was the original name of Hummel Field House?

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Monday, December 19, 2011

Bethany Trivia

What was the Buffalo Seminary?

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Monday, December 12, 2011

Bethany Trivia

In what year was Phillips Hall completed?  What is its purpose?

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Monday, December 5, 2011

Bethany Trivia

When and why was the Green and White Club established?  What is its purpose?

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Thursday, December 1, 2011

Thankfully Looking Ahead and Giving Back


(The President's Letter, December 2011)

While most Americans mark Thanksgiving as the start of the holiday season, for those of us who work from the academic calendar, it signals the closing days of the fall semester.  For almost everyone, however, this is a period of reflection and a time of sharing with family and friends. This season will be especially significant for Annie and me, as we celebrate our fifth Christmas at Bethany.

Bethanians share a long legacy of giving back, a tradition that continues undiminished to this day as we translate the spirit of our founders into meeting contemporary needs.  In fact, recognizing Bethany’s commitment to volunteering, service learning and civic engagement, the Corporation for National and Community Service recently named the College to the President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll.

In addition, Bethany is among over 250 institutions nationwide responding to President Obama’s invitation to higher education to create awareness of other faiths through campus service. Our Service Learning Center has also sponsored numerous initiatives, including the recently launched “Homefront Comfort” program and annual Day of Service which we will mark in January 2012.  

Among the many blessings at Bethany for which we are thankful this holiday season and throughout the year, we can cite…
  • Our visionary founders whose wisdom and perseverance created a firm foundation for our ongoing success;
  • A gifted and energetic Board of Trustees who give unhesitatingly of their time, talent and treasure;
  • A loyal and hard-working faculty and staff who go far beyond the expected in inspiring, motivating and mentoring students while supporting  our entire leadership team;
  • Accomplished students, who excel in the classroom, on the courts and playing fields and in their communities; each year we continue to welcome an increasingly well-prepared class of first-year students who demonstrate great promise.
During the holiday season, we also consider giving back through our giving to Bethany. It is our deserving students who most benefit from your gifts to The Bethany Fund. If you’ve already made your gift this year, we thank you.  If not, I invite you to participate now by clicking on our website:  www.bethanywv.edu/give

Just as your experience at Bethany College was enriched by the support of those who have gone before you, you now have the opportunity to enhance the experience of current and future students.  Bethany College is committed to keeping a private, liberal arts education affordable for all who can benefit from it—an effort that by itself has also brought us national recognition.  We are especially proud that the College’s financial aid programs have resulted in “Best Buy” rankings from both Forbes and Barron’s, and also that Bethany students placed 7th nationally in lowest student debt, according to a recent U.S. News and World Report listing.  

As you know, however, tuition does not begin to cover the full cost of a Bethany education and the lifelong benefits it offers.  Gifts to The Bethany Fund expand scholarship and financial aid offerings, upgrade computer and lab equipment, strengthen the library and provide access to worldwide electronic technology.  Your gift will help to ensure that the College remains affordable and accessible for our young scholars who have chosen Bethany for some of the most important years of their lives. 

Although our roots as a College are in the Judeo-Christian tradition, all faiths celebrate this time of year as the days imperceptibly begin to lengthen and signal a season of hope and light.  May this season be one of joy, thanksgiving and light for you and yours.

Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Surviving and Thriving in Challenging Times

Growing Endowment
(College Planning and Management, November 2011 - by Scott D. Miller and Marylouise Fennell)

Though it may sound counter-intuitive, challenging times represent an opportunity to invest in the future, while advancing boldly, when others are retreating.  History is replete with examples. At the start of the Great Depression, for instance, Post and Kellogg were neck-in-neck. Post, however, chose to retrench, while Kellogg went full-steam ahead.  When good times returned, Kellogg was well-positioned to become the industry leader in breakfast cereals.
         
As Molly Brand of ACE advises, “Hunkering down is not a good option.”

On the contrary, especially when times are tough, we need to be proactive and often downright aggressive to move beyond sustainability.

Writing in our book Presidential Perspectives (Aramark Publications, 2010) our colleague Dr. Dan Angel, president of Golden Gate University in San Francisco, emphasizes two strategies:

          ¨ Invest for the future.  There is an oft-repeated fund-raising quip revolving around a yearly calendar in which there is a monthly excuse for not actively seeking support. For example, in January, people have overspent for holiday gifts; in February, they are planning for summer vacations, and so forth.  Though there may never be an ideal time to raise money, it is an absolute necessity for future sustainability.  Investing in technology is one example. Investing in staff and support resources is another.   At most institutions, planned giving programs now generate the bulk of endowment funds.  Therefore, it is critical that colleges attract and retain highly-qualified professionals to cultivate these long-term relationships. Our history suggests that a college can recognize major returns on this investment within five years or less.

          ¨ Think strategically.  Dr. Angel tells the story of the 12-year old sharpshooter who was drawing widespread acclaim for always hitting the bull’s-eye.  Asked how he achieved this remarkable accuracy, the marksman replied, “It’s really not so difficult. I just shoot the holes and then draw the bull’s-eye around them.”  As Dr. Angel points out, “Unfortunately, we have to draw our targets first and then lead our institutions toward the center.”

          To these recommendations, we would add,

           ¨  Institute or update a comprehensive institutional review as a vehicle for positioning your college or university for the future.  Especially in difficult economic times, a thorough review can also more clearly delineate priorities, provide a sharper focus and establish a future agenda.  Further, an in-depth review by outside experts will provide a more objective foundation for strategic and long-range planning and specific to building endowment, it will advise on perceptions of key constituencies while helping to determine the potential for increased support. Moreover, it may also reveal hidden “minefields” that need to be addressed before embarking on a capital or planned giving campaign.

          ¨       Cultivate and recognize women donors.  As our valued colleague Jerold Panas, executive partner and chief executive officer of Jerold Panas, Linzy & Partners, a leading specialist in financial resource development, emphasizes, women now hold more than 53 percent of the nation’s net worth; by 2014, that figure will be nudging 60 percent. In Jerry’s words, “If you don’t have a very strong representation of women in your donor base, you need to change your direction.”

          ¨       Help donors to get more of what they want.  Prospective donors obviously want to know about the institution, Panas notes, but first, they are interested in why you are contacting them.  “If you will help people get what they want, they will help you get what you want,” he emphasizes.
 
A strong endowment is the bedrock on which all future institutional growth and development is built, and institutions who fail to create long-term financial sustainability in the midst of current operational expenses do so at their peril. 

#       #       #
         
Dr. Scott D. Miller is President of the College and M.M. Cochran Professor of Leadership Studies at Bethany College in West Virginia.  Now in his third college presidency, he is in this 21st year as a CEO.

Dr. Marylouise Fennell, RSM, a former president of Carlow University in Pittsburgh, PA, is senior counsel for the Council of Independent Colleges (CIC) and a partner in Hyatt Fennell, Higher Education Services-The TCR Group

They have collaborated on six books, including “President to President:  Views on Technology in Higher Education” (2010) and “Presidential Perspectives: Economic Prosperity in the Next Decade” (2010.)  Both serve as consultants to college presidents and boards.  
                   

Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Presidential Perspectives

(This month's issue of Presidential Perspectives, a presidential thought series, published by Scott D. Miller and Marylouise Fennell with support of Aramark Higher Education). 

This month's chapter is titled "Cost, Price, and Value: The Challenging Landscape of Higher Education." 

Monday, November 28, 2011

Bethany Trivia

In what year did the construction of Old Main begin?  What building did it replace?

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Wednesday, November 23, 2011

Recognizing three of Bethany College’s best and most loyal.

Three recently retired long-time members of the Bethany faculty were honored at a dinner at Christman Manor for their meritorious service to the College. Jay Buckelew (biology), Mary Ellen Komorowski (mathematics) and Randy Cooey (business and economics) were recognized with the distinction of professor-emeritus and presented with engraved Bethany College rocking chairs.

Monday, November 21, 2011

Bethany Trivia

In what year did the Bethany football team win the Presidents' Athletic Conference Championship?

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Monday, November 14, 2011

Bethany Trivia


Where is Strangers Hall located?

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Monday, November 7, 2011

Bethany Trivia

Since the founding of Bethany, how many presidents have there been?

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Tuesday, November 1, 2011

Two Homecomings Reveal the Faith of Our Founders


(The President's Letter, November 2011)

Another Homecoming Weekend at Bethany has come and gone. This year, October 7-9, we enjoyed summer-like weather as alumni and friends gathered to renew friendships and share memories.

We hosted another successful Hugh “Tiger” Joyce Golf Scramble benefiting Bethany athletics and the Allison’s Run/Walk that underwrites the student prize named in memory of Professor James Allison ‘64. We inducted four new members into the Bethany Athletic Hall of Fame: Rudolph Frank ’77, baseball; Brian Dickman ’95, football/track; Brian Taylor ’98, tennis/golf, and Amy Harvilla Rocini ’01, soccer.
         
Eight alumni from print and broadcast media joined the Wall of Fame at the Department of Communications and Media Arts in Bethany House: Michael Christman ’88; Scarlett Foster ‘79; Kurt Franck ’78; Peter Jensen ’81; Rick Kenney ’80; Matt Mastrangelo ’87; Gene Miller ’47; and Toria Tolley ’78.
         
An amazing exhibit, “Science Becomes Art: A Galapagos Islands Experience,” was on display at Renner Art Gallery. This collection of photographs and memorabilia from a Bethany College student and faculty research trip impressed viewers with the scientific significance and other-worldly beauty of the Galapagos.

Although our travels as Bethanians may take us far from campus, even to Pacific waters off Ecuador, all roads eventually lead us back to our mountaintop home. The irresistible pull of their alma mater continues to captivate Bethany alumni in ways they can hardly anticipate as undergraduates.
         
A very special homecoming for me was delivering the keynote address at the October 14 Founders Day convocation of my alma mater, West Virginia Wesleyan College. For the Wesley Chapel audience of fellow alumni, friends, faculty, and current students convened by my talented colleague President Pamela Balch, former Vice President for Academic Affairs at Bethany, I described the transformational experience of attending a small, church-related college. These institutions are defined by the courageous faith and work of founders who foresaw the lasting value of independent higher education. Traditions such as Founders Day at our two colleges, I said, are opportunities to affirm our promises of continuity to those who have gone before us, and conveyed to us the gift of their trust, their labor, and their dreams.

During my recent time on the campus where I had first arrived in August of 1977 as an anxious freshman, I visited with Bethanians William B. Grove ’51, Bishop of the West Virginia Area of the United Methodist Church, retired; Elizabeth Weimer ’42 and Dan Martin ’73, former and current members, respectively, of the Wesleyan faculty, and the man who had recruited me more than three decades ago to the Wesleyan cross-country team, coach Hank Ellis. It had occurred to me that alumni of Wesleyan, Bethany, and other vibrant colleges tend to carry with them a sort of passport of their onetime campus identity. We may become citizens of our nation and world during the course of our lives, but somehow we always remain, first and foremost, citizens of our undergraduate experiences. I had referenced this during my convocation address, and later experienced it in the warm handshakes and embraces of those who had shared — and helped to shape — my undergraduate journey.

Coming “home” to my alma mater is always more than a sentimental journey. It is a continuation of the exploration of who I am. The friendships I developed during my college years have impacted my life and career in profound ways. I am sure the same is true for Bethany’s alumni for whom our small college is an anchor of their lives, as our founder intended.

The world is often a place in turmoil; during the last few years, a faltering economy, high unemployment, and disenchantment with institutions have replaced confidence with uncertainty. Yet each autumn our colleges roll out the welcome of Homecoming, renewing the precious ties of graduates to one of the most influential, reliable, and enduring forces in their existence. Alumni faithfully return to a place that will always be there for them — in Bethany, Buckhannon, or wherever the college-nurtured mind and spirit converge in memory and experience. Such was the Homecoming experience of our Bethanians early in October and for me, a week later, at Wesleyan.
         
Accompanying us—indeed, directing us—on the journey of our lives is that special time and place of our undergraduate years, all too fleeting, yet forever memorable, and certainly irreplaceable.

Monday, October 31, 2011

Presidential Perspectives


(This month's issue of Presidential Perspectives, a presidential thought series, published by Scott D. Miller and Marylouise Fennell with support of Aramark Higher Education). 

This month's chapter is titled "Circular Innovation in Challenging Times." 

Bethany Trivia


What is the Millenial Harbinger?

Click here to see the answer and other Bethany Trivia questions.

Friday, October 28, 2011

Faith of Our Founders: A Personal Homecoming

(West Virginia Wesleyan College Founders Day Convocation Address – by Dr. Scott D. Miller)

Good morning and thank you for that kind introduction, Bishop Weaver.  During my years as president of Wesley College, I had the pleasure of working with Bishop Weaver in extending the mission of United Methodist Higher Education.  It was an honor for me to work with him as a trustee of Wesley, a fellow graduate of West Virginia Wesleyan, and, at that time, President of the Council of Bishops nationally. 

The Wesleyan campus community is also fortunate to have the commitment of Pam and Patrick Balch.  President Balch is known and respected nationally by her peers.  The fact that she is an alumna of our Alma Mater brings special meaning because she “bleeds Orange and Black.”  I admire her for the wonderful job she has done leading West Virginia Wesleyan in extremely challenging times. 

To Trustees, faculty and staff, students, fellow alumni, and friends, it is an honor for me to return to my Alma Mater and to be with you this morning for the celebration of the 121st anniversary of the founding of Wesleyan.

I bring you greetings from Bethany College, in West Virginia’s Northern Panhandle—an institution defined, like Wesleyan, by the courageous work of founders who foresaw the lasting value of private, church-related higher education. It is a tribute to their founding vision, decades of tradition, and the quality of leading, teaching, and advising on these scenic and student-centered campuses that our institutions have endured so much, adapted to the times, yet remained true to our missions and values.  

Wesleyan and Bethany are among those small liberal arts colleges which have survived the tumult of wars, economic depression, and changing demographics. And so each Founders Day is an opportunity to affirm our promises of continuity to those who have gone before us, and have conveyed to us the gift of their trust, their labor, and their dreams.  

I am personally grateful to this College, and to the ones I have served as president, for the opportunity to participate in the ennobling,
yet humbling, tradition of independent higher education.

To be sure, I was very humble the first time I traveled to Buckhannon in August of 1977 to enroll as a freshman. There I was, a shy, skinny kid from a small town driving down Interstate 79 from northwestern Pennsylvania in my AMC Pacer—some of you remember the Pacer, it looked like something out of science fiction—hauling a cargo of less than half the belongings the typical freshman of today brings to college—alone, anxious, knowing no one upon arrival, not sure what to expect, what to do, where to go.  

I mulled the advice of my parents.  My father told me, “Have fun.”  My mother added, “Don’t hang around your room all the time. Get involved.” 

“Have fun.”  “Get involved.” I could do that.   

Because of pre-season cross country, I arrived on campus earlier than most freshmen.  The first face to greet me was veteran coach Hank Ellis.  Wearing a bright orange Bobcat sweatsuit, he met me with the same smile and warm feeling that he has thousands of prospective students over his decades of association with the College. 

Within a few days, I had settled in to the third floor of Jenkins Hall.  Half the floor was empty, awaiting other freshmen.  The remainder of the occupants were athletes, the likes of football standouts J.J. McGuire, Myron Williams, and Danny Williams and basketball stalwarts Jim Brogan, Tim Dixon and Rich Cameron who were all there and casting various impressions on the newbys. Although I was an unformed Bobcat, I knew I was at the right place.

My first class was something called the “Humanities Experience,” taught by Arminta Baldwin.  The syllabus stated that a major goal was to understand world cultures—which included Japan’s.  I am afraid that much of the content of the Japanese unit of the course was lost on me—that is, until years later when I found myself sitting in a Tokyo skyscraper negotiating with my counterparts from that nation. The “Humanities Experience” indeed had served me well. 

Wesleyan holds many wonderful memories. Watching college and professional football, World Series games and much more at "events" at the Phi Sig, Theta Xi, Theta Chi and Kappa Alpha houses; whitewater rafting on the New River; weekend trips to Audra Park and Stonecoal Lake; road trips all over West Virginia to away football and basketball games, including memorable trips, yes, to Morgantown.  Then there were the local “eateries”—The Center, Bobcat Lounge, the Depot, Pizza Shak and much more.  I could have been the poster child for the fun times in “Wild, Wonderful West Virginia.”

On-campus activities included all the latest Disco hits at dances at the “Top of the S.C.O.W.”; Vic Genre and the Stone Mansion Band was a campus favorite. I joined the debate team, talked sports and DJ’d on WVWC-FM, attended Community Council, took pictures and did page layout for the Murmurmontis, and joined the staff of the Pharos, writing a sports column titled "Miller Time," and eventually becoming editor-in-chief. My then-advisor, Mort Gamble, and I reminisce today about long Sunday nights at the Record-Delta proofing stories and pasting up layout sheets by hand for the next sensational edition of the Pharos. Digital graphic design was years away.

Through it all, Wesleyan worked its magic, and I was well on my way to being a proud alumnus of this institution. Although I could not imagine the specifics of what lay ahead in my life, I had the assurance of many on this campus, and in the wider Wesleyan community, that my four years here would be rewarding, influential, and just a lot of fun. And they were certainly right.

Most of all, the College’s liberal arts mission helped me to transcend my small-town roots. I left here with a working knowledge of different subjects, a curiosity about the world, and the tools of communication and research that served me well, first as a reporter and later as an educator.

Alumni of Wesleyan and other vibrant colleges tend to carry with them a sort of passport of their onetime campus identity. We may become citizens of our nation and world during the course of our lives, but somehow we always remain,
first and foremost, citizens of our undergraduate experiences. It is a tribute to the kind of enrichment that I found here that I have chosen a career in private higher education. Wesleyan inspired me to work to make that opportunity available to thousands of others for whom the independent college experience is nothing less than transformative.

But the world has profoundly changed in the three decades since I sat in these classrooms, and I would like to devote a few moments to sharing with you a bit of the independent college experience from another perspective—that of a college president of three institutions, for a total of 21 years.  In these years, higher education has come under increased scrutiny from the media, families, employers, and students themselves.   Stark realities have emerged that none of us in this Chapel can afford to ignore. And yet we find, too, the kind of opportunity that perhaps only the small, private, residential, liberal arts college can realize.

A recent survey commissioned by the Pew Foundation revealed decidedly mixed perceptions about the value of higher education that should cause all of us to take stock. On the one hand, alumni themselves believe that their investment in a four-year college education was worthwhile, and long-term salary statistics confirm that assessment. On the other, however, the public increasingly feels that a four-year college education is out of reach economically. Families fear that student loan interest rates will skyrocket, and the continued uncertainty surrounding Pell Grants adds to the perception that a college education may not be affordable. The opening of fall term this year, for me, represented the most unusual, unstable, and anxious recruitment cycle I have experienced in my entire career in higher education.

Meanwhile, colleges and universities struggle to define and communicate the worth of some disciplines, such as the humanities, that are often shelved in favor of more attractive—that is, lucrative—majors. As employers point to what they see as a mismatch between needed skills and preparation of college graduates, colleges must find creative solutions to marketing themselves in an economy slowly recovering from recession while remaining accessible for students who can benefit from a first-class, liberal arts education.

To borrow a phrase from Thomas Paine, and I’m sure President Balch will agree, these are the times that try college presidents’ souls.

Yet as my colleague Dr. Marylouise Fennell and I have discovered in editing the contributions of our colleagues for the publication Presidential Perspectives, many institutions are not only adapting to the new realities of higher education, but thriving.  As some economists are fond of saying about seizing opportunity amid uncertainty, higher education, too, can benefit from tough times. Dr. Jo Young Switzer, president of Manchester College, states: “A crisis is an opportunity to talk about change.”

Change we must. Around the nation, small colleges like Wesleyan and Bethany are discovering that if they do not manage change, change will manage them. Successful institutions are building collaborative partnerships with campus peers and professional associations; developing selected online, distance-learning, and graduate-degree programs; investing in continuing education options; benefiting from the value of energy conservation and sustainability of resources, and upgrading facilities to serve student expectations and support retention of enrollment. These institutions recognize the changing demographics of student populations—often older, non-traditional, career-established. Students may be multi-lingual, or come from other nations. And many of our new students represent the first generation in their families to attend college.

To thrive in today’s volatile higher-education environment, all of us in our campus communities must continually scan the landscape, and be alert to new possibilities and areas of vulnerability. The “window of opportunity” often closes rapidly; the margin for error is increasingly slim.

While our instructional tools and delivery systems may change, our greatest strength as a small-college community lies in our original reason for being—to communicate to our students the value and process of exploring our humanity, to convey the tools needed to roam purposefully across the range of knowledge and endeavor, to adapt to the ever-shifting career marketplace, and to pursue ongoing education in a world of astonishing change.

Bethany, like Wesleyan, annually hosts presentations by alumni and others with cutting-edge careers in business, communications, law, public service, and other fields. Without fail, our speakers underscore the value of lifelong study of more than just narrowly vocational subjects. The benefits of such mental discipline, they say, can range from holding one’s own in conversation at business functions, to thinking and communicating clearly, to establishing and managing multimillion-dollar companies. The ability to process the world through skills gained in the study of the liberal arts will sustain students regardless of how many jobs they hold—and for today’s college graduates, there will be many.

For me, coming “home” to Wesleyan is more than a sentimental journey. It is a very real continuation of the exploration of who I am, and I am here often in spirit. The friendships I developed through Wesleyan, both during my time as a student and thereafter, have continued to shape my life and career…Hank Ellis, Jim Warner of the Record-Delta, the late Betty Van Kirk, former president Tom Courtice, Harold and Sylvia Elmore, Bishop Peter Weaver, LeRoy Jones, Kent Carpenter, and Mort Gamble—my former advisor at Wesleyan, who 33 years later still serves as a senior advisor to me in the role of Assistant to the President at Bethany College.  Much like my own homecoming today, I welcome Mort Gamble back to the campus where he began his tremendous career in higher education that included vice presidential posts at three colleges.   Four of the trustees at my previous institution were Wesleyan graduates, including the President of the Council of Bishops of the United Methodist Church. I proudly embrace the values and traditions of this College, enriching all of our lives.

I think we can contribute no greater good to our students than respect for the timeless ideals and faith of our founders. That is the gift that was given to me. Had I realized in 1977 the exciting possibilities arising from my time here, I would have driven my AMC Pacer much faster to “Sunnybuck.”  I did not know then, of course, what awaited me. My education proved to be the necessary intervention that informed, disciplined, and has sustained me in my personal journey.

To you, this special community of scholars across the generations, here in the heart of West Virginia, I therefore offer my profound gratitude for all that you mean to me, and all that you represent to those whom you serve so well.

Thank you for the opportunity to share this day with you, and may God bless our “home among the hills.”

#     #     #

October 14, 2011, Wesley Chapel, West Virginia Wesleyan College, Buckhannon, WV.





Monday, October 24, 2011

Bethany Trivia


What championship did the women’s volleyball team win in the fall of 2010?

Click here to see the answer and other Bethany Trivia questions.

Monday, October 17, 2011

Bethany Trivia


What famous entrepreneur provided funds to build a library at Bethany College?
Click here to see the answer and other Bethany Trivia questions.

Monday, October 10, 2011

Bethany Trivia


 Which opponent has Bethany defeated the most in football?

Click here to see the answer and other Bethany Trivia questions.

Tuesday, October 4, 2011

Presidential Perspectives


(This month's issue of Presidential Perspectives, a presidential thought series, published by Scott D. Miller and Marylouise Fennell with support of Aramark Higher Education). 

This month's chapter is titled "Cutting Our Way to Excellence? Unlikely." 

Monday, October 3, 2011

Bethany Trivia


What were the first buildings at Bethany College?

Click here to see the answer and other Bethany Trivia questions.

Bethany Meets the Challenge of Marketing in Tough Times

(The President's Letter, October 2011)


Addressing our September 8 Bethany College Fall Convocation audience—especially our students—Board of Trustees Chair Greg Jordan suggested that as we look over the menu of today’s bad headlines, we hold the despair.

Fluctuations in stock markets, unemployment figures, and other indicators of the nation’s financial health are cyclical and normal, Jordan, a native of Warwood, W.Va., and now global managing partner of Pittsburgh’s Reed Smith law firm, reminded us in his address, “You Can Get There from Here.” None should derail a student’s plans for success.

That’s wise advice for seniors about to enter one of the toughest job markets in American history—symptomatic of perilous economic conditions that nationwide are preventing many other students from committing to a four-year undergraduate program in the first place.

We hear a lot these days about affordability and value of higher education. At a time when our institutions continue to come under increased scrutiny from the media, families, employers, and students themselves, outcomes and perceived value are paramount concerns.  A recent survey commissioned by the Pew Foundation revealed decidedly mixed perceptions about the value of higher education that should cause the industry to take stock. On the one hand, alumni themselves believe that their investment in a four-year college education is worthwhile, and long-term salary statistics confirm that assessment. On the other, however, the public increasingly feels that a four-year college education is out of reach economically. As with much else in our economy, consumer perception and confidence drive purchases.

Confronting these challenges, colleges and universities have had to adopt new business models. Writing in Presidential Perspectives, which my colleague Dr. Marylouise Fennell and I edit, President and CEO of the National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO) John Walda states, “What has changed, dramatically and positively, is the way we in higher education do business. Higher education institutions have been exploring new financial and educational delivery models at an unprecedented pace…finding new and innovative ways to respond to student need, often while simultaneously cutting operating costs.”

Whether partnering with other institutions, outsourcing services, or simply relying on bold strategic planning, colleges and universities have no choice but to manage change before it manages them.

At Bethany, we work hard every day to manage change effectively, and we are succeeding.  Our vital indicators are strong—in enrollment, fundraising, outcomes assessment, program innovation, and quality of campus life. Our strengths led again this fall to a top-tier, national liberal arts listing in the U.S. News & World Report annual rankings of America’s best colleges. In a challenging career marketplace, our students benefit from the strength of instruction and mentoring found only at Bethany. Our graduating seniors have secured superb positions with major companies around the nation; right behind them are juniors and seniors whom we’ve placed in exciting internships in New York, Washington, D.C., Pittsburgh, and other cities.  Most of our graduates (over 90 percent) are employed or enrolled in graduate programs within six months of graduation. 

The College’s reputation as a highly effective undergraduate institution of national distinction is also confirmed through the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE), a study that compares Bethany with other colleges and universities.  The findings, based on what the students themselves are saying about Bethany, speak to our quality and bolster Bethany’s mission and reputation as a small campus of academic rigor, strong student engagement, and substantial outcomes.  Bethany students are outperforming peers in key benchmarked questions, scoring from 11 to 20 percentage points higher than those at similar peer institutions in selected indicators.

Much of the reason is that for the students who make the sometimes difficult decision to enroll in college, we are making every effort to help them succeed. After his Fall Convocation address at Bethany, Greg Jordan hosted an afternoon panel of top-flight business professionals for an audience packed with students. He and his colleagues covered career-wise topics such as clear communication, appreciation for other cultures, keeping up with technology, and the importance of volunteering. That’s the kind of “value-added” feature that market-minded colleges are making available these days.

Bethany continues to lead such efforts, working from a sound, 10-year strategic plan and benefiting from dedicated faculty, a major investment in campus facility upgrades, innovative programs and affiliations, and the comfort and strength of our own special traditions and sense of purpose as a vibrant college community.  We need to do more, and we will. But as we proceed through our fall term and look forward to an exciting Homecoming Weekend just days away, we can be thankful that our reputation for excellence precedes us and sustains us. In our 172nd year, Bethany’s heart beats strong.  From a marketing perspective, and many others, that is very good news indeed!

Friday, September 30, 2011

A Road Less Easily Traveled: Selling Higher Education in Tough Times


(The State Journal, September 2011 - by Scott D. Miller)

Addressing our September 8 Bethany College Fall Convocation audience—especially our students—Board of Trustees Chair Greg Jordan suggested that as we look over the menu of today’s bad headlines, we hold the despair.

Fluctuations in stock markets, unemployment figures, and other indicators of the nation’s financial health are cyclical and normal, Jordan, a native of Warwood, WV, and now global managing partner of Pittsburgh’s Reed Smith law firm, reminded us in his address, “You Can Get There from Here.” None should derail a student’s plans for success.

That’s wise advice for seniors about to enter one of the toughest job markets in American history—symptomatic of perilous economic conditions that are preventing many other students from committing to a four-year undergraduate program in the first place.
At a time when higher education continues to come under increased scrutiny from the media, families, employers, and students themselves, outcomes and perceived value are paramount concerns.  A recent survey commissioned by the Pew Foundation revealed decidedly mixed perceptions about the value of higher education that should cause the industry to take stock. On the one hand, alumni themselves believe that their investment in a four-year college education was a worthwhile investment, and long-term salary statistics confirm that assessment. On the other, however, the public increasingly feels that a four-year college education is out of reach economically.

Families fear that student loan interest rates will skyrocket, and the continued uncertainty surrounding Pell Grants adds to the perception that a college education may not be affordable. Despite the availability of other forms of financial aid, once they graduate, college students are likely to find themselves in debt.  A study by the Institute for Financial Literacy found that college graduates are not only not immune from bankruptcy, but now constitute the fastest-growing group seeking such protection.  Some employers, meanwhile, point to what they see as the mismatch between needed skills and preparation of college graduates. 

Bottom line? The opening of fall term this year, for me, represents the most unusual, unstable, and anxious recruitment cycle I have experienced in my career as a higher education administrator. As with much else in our economy, consumer perception and confidence drive purchases.

Confronting fluctuations in enrollment, colleges and universities have had to adopt new business models. Writing in Presidential Perspectives, which my colleague Dr. Marylouise Fennell and I edit, President and CEO of the National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO) John Walda states, “What has changed, dramatically and positively, is the way we in higher education do business. Higher education institutions have been exploring new financial and educational delivery models at an unprecedented pace…finding new and innovative ways to respond to student need, often while simultaneously cutting operating costs.”


Whether partnering with other institutions, as Bethany College does, outsourcing basic services like food services and campus security, or simply relying on bold strategic planning, colleges and universities have no choice but to manage change before it manages them.

Often it’s as much, if not more, a matter of retaining current students—the existing paying customers—as recruiting new ones. Dr. Joe Pace, a national expert in student retention, prescribes “total employee commitment and involvement” for ailing student retention rates. That means that every employee of a college or university—administrators, faculty, service staff—needs to be a model, mentor, or monitor, especially of newly enrolled, at-risk students such as those who represent the first generation in their families to attend college. For them, the first three months of the first semester are especially critical.

For the students who make the sometimes difficult decision to enroll in college, we should make every effort to help them succeed. After his Fall Convocation address at Bethany, Greg Jordan hosted an afternoon panel of top-flight business professionals for an audience packed with students. He and his colleagues covered career-wise topics such as clear communication, appreciation for other cultures, keeping up with technology, and the importance of volunteering. That’s the kind of “value-added” feature that market-minded colleges are making available these days.

As in any business, if we in higher education do our jobs well in pleasing our clients, they are likely to return to invest in what we offer. A freshly matriculated college freshman may contemplate four years of college as a long road to travel. Given today’s economy, however, it is no less a formidable goal for us educators who pronounce the merits of making that journey.

Monday, September 26, 2011

Bethany Trivia


What sororities formerly existed at Bethany College?

Click here to see the answer and other Bethany Trivia questions.

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Fostering Student Success: Vision, Emotion and Connectivity


(Enrollment Manager, October 2011 – by Scott D. Miller and Marylouise Fennell)

When it comes to student retention, it turns out that what we thought we knew ain’t necessarily so.  Current research reveals that many key assumptions on which we have often based enrollment management practices need to be challenged and modified.

Take, for instance, the traditional institutionally-centered focus on retention.  When we as college CEOs and senior enrollment (admissions) managers turn this issue around, examining persistence from the student’s standpoint, we enhance existing perspectives about what fosters students success, says Dr. Joe Pace, a nationally-known specialist in student retention.

Institutions have often acted on the knowledge that students are most vulnerable to dropping out within their first 90 days of enrollment by creating success-centered classes, First Year seminars and the like.  Such courses are helpful in stemming attrition, but they don’t go far enough.  When we delve further into what motivates students to persist until graduation, we find that “it is total employee commitment and involvement that makes the difference,” Pace notes.

Further, we have often placed most responsibility for retention upon faculty or enrollment management staff, rather than fostering connectivity across the board. All employees need to be models, mentors and monitors.  The stronger the connections they foster with students, the higher the rate of student persistence. 

The reverse is also true.  “Unconscious saboteurs” – those who (often unknowingly) create negative enrollment outcomes -- can undo the best work of even model mentors.  “It takes 11 positive mentor models to counteract the influence of one negative,” Pace notes. 

Thus, it is critical for institutions to train all employees in what Pace calls “the edupreneurial spirit,” focusing on the student or customer-oriented side of higher education. 

Next, institutions too often create a disconnect between student expectations and reality, emphasizing rational choices rather than emotion in the choice to remain enrolled or to drop out.  College presidents and senior leadership need to embrace the “heart” or “hot button” strategies based on current cognitive behavioral research to assist students in persisting.  Students who persist tend to have a sensory-rich vision in their minds; we want them to feel, taste and touch the goal.  We may want to motivate them with a picture of the student in cap and gown holding a degree taken when he or she is a freshman.  For many, it will be some other motivator, including photos with their parents, spouses and children and with them in cap and gown.  Sometimes, the more humorous or audacious the imagery, the more effective.  When students don’t persist, it is often because their vision isn’t concrete enough to take them through the rough spots.

Both i.q. and emotional intelligence are instrumental in boosting retention rates.  Every employee of the college must know what has been promised by the college to its students, and everyone must work to deliver what has been promised; dreams can quickly unravel.  The more employees understand about the student’s “picture,” the more they can support it.  Research shows that emotion is involved in any type of long-term change; people do not change without it.  Thus, successful retention strategies touch both the head and the heart.

Next, while we sometimes view successful enrollment management strategies as relying on big, bold measures, we should remember that even small changes in institutional behavior can produce measurable results over time.

You retain one student at a time, one here, another there, and before you know it, over the course of a year, your retention will have improved by 10 percent.

Finally, we must recognize that improving retention is a task that is never going to be completed.  It is ongoing.  People ask, “When will this retention thing be solved?”  It will never be totally solved.

However, by paying scrupulous attention to students’ needs and expectations (attention equals retention), hiring and promoting instructors with “intelligent hearts,” training “edupreneurs” and “touching the heart button,” we can foster greater persistence, resulting in measurably higher retention.

#     #     #

Dr. Scott D. Miller is President of the College and M.M. Cochran Professor of Leadership Studies at Bethany College in West Virginia.  Now in his third college presidency, he has served as a CEO for nearly 21 years.  

Dr. Marylouise Fennell, RSM, a former president of Carlow University in Pittsburgh, PA, is senior counsel for the Council of Independent Colleges.

Monday, September 19, 2011

Bethany Trivia


In what year did Bethany students strike? Why were the students striking?

Click here to see the answer and other Bethany Trivia questions.

Monday, September 12, 2011

Bethany Trivia


In what year were the Oglebay Gates built?

Click here to see the answer and other Bethany Trivia questions.

Tuesday, September 6, 2011

Presidential Perspectives


(This month's issue of Presidential Perspectives, a presidential thought series, published by Scott D. Miller and Marylouise Fennell with support of Aramark Higher Education). 

This month's chapter is titled "Tuition Discounting: Issue of Transparency, Access and Accountability": 

Bethany Trivia


In what year did football begin at Bethany?

Click here to see the answer and other Bethany Trivia questions.

Thursday, September 1, 2011

Historic Commitment, Recent Success Mark New Academic Year

(The President's Letter, September 2011)

As I write, we are in the second week of classes for the new academic year.  Standing in majestic Commencement Hall welcoming our new students and their families to Bethany during the annual Matriculation Convocation on August 20, I was reminded of our remarkable history.  This magnificent venue, where United States presidents and other dignitaries have spoken, seems to represent the intersection of Bethany’s golden past and a future bright with possibility.

As Bethany begins its 172nd year, the College’s proactive management of change has resulted in notable strides in key areas. These include strengthening enrollment, furthering a successful capital campaign and recruiting talented faculty committed to the core principles of a liberal arts education.

I believe that our founders would look with pride upon Bethany today, fulfilling our mission and thriving amid challenging times. Benefiting from focused strategic planning, we enter the 2011-2012 academic year with momentum and the promise of ongoing success.

Our student population is reported to be the most diverse in the College’s history, including a much wider geographical representation than in past classes.  Moreover, thanks to the stellar efforts of Director of Enrollment R.J. Zitzelsberger and his staff the academic profile of the newly-matriculated class is the strongest in 11 years, while the total enrollment of 1,020 this past year is the largest since 1976-1977.  After three successive larger-than-usual recruiting classes that have brought us to full residential capacity last year, we focused this year on increased selectivity. 

Our capital campaign has passed the $33 million mark after only three years, with total new resources from all sources exceeding $40 million during that time.  So, while we continue to face enormous challenges, these quantifiable measures show that we are on the right course, that donors express confidence in our progress through their giving and that our master planning is continuing to show the desired results.

The value of a Bethany education has been reaffirmed, as well, by a number of national rankings.   We are especially proud that the College’s  financial aid programs resulted in “Best Buy” rankings from both Forbes and Barron’s, and that Bethany students placed 7th nationally in lowest student debt, according to U.S. News and World Report.  

In addition, as a result of the College’s ongoing commitment to service, the Corporation for National and Community Service recently named Bethany a national leader among institutions of higher learning for its support of volunteering, service learning and civic engagement. In 2010, Bethany was admitted to the President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll.  Over the summer, we were invited to participate in the opening sessions of President Obama’s Interfaith and Community Service Campus Challenge, held at the White House. Our campus events for the Challenge will include days of service and ongoing dialogue about the strength of community engagement by all faiths.

There is more good news to share:
  • The College will benefit from a $100,000 challenge gift in honor of Professor Randy Cooey, who retired last year after 45 years on the College faculty in business and economics, and retired economics Professor John Davis. The gift will honor their years of service while launching a new experiential fellowship for students in business and economics.
  • In the academic area, the College is developing interdisciplinary minors in non-profit marketing and non-profit management.
  • We are also developing “dual major” pathways in social work and psychology, economics and math and business and computer science and proceeding with plans for “2 + 2” agreements in psychology while exploring a three-year degree pathway.
  • To better prepare students for a global economy and increasingly pluralistic society, we are delivering Arabic language and culture courses through the Fulbright FLTA program and further developing global opportunities leading to a study-abroad requirement no later than 2013.  In that vein, I am happy to report that Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs Dr. Gary Kappel will be heading to England next year as a visiting professor at Harlaxton College, one of several international institutions with which Bethany has  partnerships.
  • Finally, because expanded use of technology in classroom learning and teaching is so critical to student success, we continue to foster partnerships with organizations such as the Online Consortium of Independent Colleges and Universities (OCICU), New York Times Knowledge Network, and the Appalachian College Association Bowen Central Virtual Library to extend student and faculty access and library holdings.
I continue to hear positive comments from returning students marveling at the renovations in Ogden Dining Hall of Benedum Commons and the Bethany Beanery in Morlan Hall. Over the summer, the studios of the Bethany Broadcasting Network (BBN) received new equipment and a sophisticated new look.  Each of these projects was funded by private gifts.

Our athletic teams are displaying a positive outlook as they begin their fall seasons. Women’s volleyball and men’s soccer eye NCAA berths after strong conference and ECAC showings in 2010. Bethany football looks to continue its rise to the top of the PAC under the leadership of veteran Coach Tim Weaver.
         
In 2010-2011, we added men’s lacrosse, with 23 students on the roster, and we will debut women’s field hockey in fall 2012. In addition, we plan to add women’s lacrosse in 2013. Bethany continues to make progress in the area of athletics program enhancements and successes with the completion of the Goin Locker Room and plans for the future construction of a new baseball complex.

By any standard, we are doing well.  But numerous challenges remain.

Top priorities for this academic year include:
  • Addressing recommendations from the Higher Learning Commission, strengthening finances and assessment. A report is due in spring 2012;
  • Continuing to emphasize operational efficiency, control spending, forge synergistic educational partnerships and focus on cost containment;
  • Strengthening graduate and undergraduate enrollment and fostering retention;
  • Focusing on capital fundraising by securing at least $5 million in new gifts and pledges; and
  • Emphasizing Strategic Planning/Image Building.
If all this seems like a tall order, remember that Bethanians have always been resilient pioneers and innovators, building a campus in the midst of rural farmland and surviving the horrific Civil War that closed many colleges permanently.  It is this spirit of “grace and grit” that will carry us confidently into the future.

It’s often been said that success lies at the intersection of luck and preparation.  With insight, imagination and vision, and with your continued support, Bethany College will thrive and prosper in the new academic year.

P.S. Don’t forget:  Homecoming is just around the corner, October 8-10.  Watch for details in the Old Main Journal or check the schedule and registration on our web site.  Reconnect with friends, classmates and former professors on our mountaintop campus at its most beautiful in the fall season.