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This post is a continuation of a series of Twokin Consulting articles on how higher education institutions need to challenge the status quo using innovative ideas for reducing costs, increasing revenues, and improving campus operations.
Twokin Consulting Estimate of Implementation Difficulty | Medium |
Twokin Consulting Estimate of Implementation Timeline | Long Time Frame (6 months to 24 months) |
Twokin Consulting Estimate of Direct Financial Impact | Medium |
Twokin Consulting Estimate of Campus Controversy it will Generate | Some questions on it |
Twokin Consulting has worked with smaller colleges in which recruiting student-athletes is crucial for meeting the school's enrollment goals for the year. Equally important is the retention of these students for the overall success of the school. While college coaches are often evaluated based on the success of their team on the field, the recruitment and retention of student-athletes should also be considered in their evaluations.
Twokin Consulting recommends that there are no disincentive for coaches to exceed their recruiting goal and to have a student-athlete high retention rate. This might sound weird, but it can happen. Exceeding a recruitment goal doesn't often lead to more operating money for a program. In fact, the program's operating budget money typically remains the same regardless of recruiting success or failure. Similarly, a high retention rate can also have a negative impact since there are more student-athletics on the team with the same operating funds.
For some small athletic teams, Twokin Consulting has seen that it is sometimes a challenge to meet the enrollment goals for the year. Who is accountable for this? For example, if the goal is to recruit seven new students for the shotgun team and only five join the school, who is accountable?
Coaches have a significant impact on their student-athletes, and they can support higher retention by emphasizing the importance of academics. Twokin Consulting has seen effective programs that include recognizing academic achievements, implementing mandatory study times, providing direct tutoring, and encouraging the formation of athletic study groups. A key for this to be successful is that part of the performance evaluation of coaches is on their attaining their annual requirement goals and on retaining students at the school, at or above the average rate for the school.
Twokin Consulting specializes in helping supporting colleges, universities, and nonprofits organizations in brainstorming strategies and ideas for improving operations.