By Lexie V. Owen | Echo
The class of 2019 has 514 students as of May 1, a 15 percent increase from last year's class.The increase, 77 matriculated freshmen up from 437 enrollments in 2014, can be attributed to the efforts of multiple departments on campus.
According to Enrollment Data Manager Nathan Baker, a change in financial aid structure has contributed to the jump in enrollment numbers.
Seeing that the 2014 enrollment number was down compared to 2013's 461 enrollments, the Financial Aid Office sought the help of consultant Hardwick Bay to advise them on making a change.
"Their (Hardwick Bay's) suggestion put into place a whole new academic grid," director of Financial Aid Tim Nace said. "Prior to this upcoming fall, you had to have a certain test score and a certain GPA and you had to have both of those numbers to get an academic scholarship. Now we have more of a points system where you get so many points for your test score and so many points for your GPA. You combine those and depending on your total number of points, you get a certain amount in scholarships."
If a student lacks in one area, but excels in another, he or she now has an opportunity to balance out to qualify for scholarships. Scholarship amounts have also increased for the first time in 5 years.
"We felt like every time our tuition went up, the buying power of that scholarship went down a bit," Nace said. "So it was time to make an adjustment there."
Academic scholarships previously ranged from $3,000 to $10,000. Scholarships for this year's applicants range from $5,000 to $14,000.
In addition, the Admissions Office has streamlined online communication and targeted information to specific students.
"We're using a process that allows us to deliver content to a student based on what we know about them rather than just mass marketing," Baker said. "We're able to use more business-oriented approaches based on who they are, what they enjoy and what they want from their college experience. We're really targeting our recruitment efforts on those who have expressed interest."
Having many veterans on staff also had a significant benefit for increasing knowledge and experience in student relations. Newer admissions staff members rely on the ability of long-time admissions members to communicate Taylor's mission and values to inform interested high school students.
All of these efforts have contributed to the significance of the increase, but according to Nace, numbers have been on their way up for some time.
"The number of applications, the number of people who accepted and the number of people who were putting down matriculation deposits was up even before we announced our new financial aid grid in October," Nace said. "It does seem as though God is up to something here. He's put together a fantastic incoming class and it'll be interesting to see what he does."
