Jan. 19, 2021
Dear Colleagues:
Much has transpired since my last campus update in October. On a celebratory note, I am deeply grateful to each of you as employees, and to our students, for the successful and safe completion of our fall 2020 semester. Because of your commitment, tireless work, and care for our students, we were able to fully complete our in-person and remote educational experience this fall—an accomplishment many institutions were not able to achieve. I have heard from numerous students and their families how much it meant to them to be a part of the Messiah community this fall, both in-person and remotely. Thank you for advancing our institutional mission even in the most difficult of times. It is my sincere hope that during the winter break you were able to enjoy meaningful times of rest and renewal with loved ones.
At the start of this new year, we are all keenly aware of the brokenness, division, volatility and violence in our nation. Please read this attachment that I sent to our students about the importance of modeling what it means to be a truly Christ-centered educational community in these dark times.
As we navigate spring semester—Together at Messiah—we will continue to provide a healthy, safe, high-quality and flexible educational experience for all of our undergraduate, graduate and adult degree learners. Messiah’s Integration and Response Team will continue to work across all areas of the university to implement: ongoing mitigation measures; population and screening testing for students and employees; and educational and support programs that foster holistic student learning.
The Community Promise that we made to each other earlier this year reminds us of our shared responsibility to follow the mitigation practices that allowed us to successfully complete the fall semester. Please follow the most current university response and planning at the Together at Messiah website (see the accordion “Following safe employee practices” for reminders on practices such as masking, physical distancing, daily health screenings, travel, etc.) as well as the latest updates our institutional emergency blog.
Strategic planning progress
In December and early January, progress was made on the drafting of an institutional vision and further consideration of four key themes to guide Messiah’s strategic plan for 2021-2024. The board of trustees, COE Senate and University Council will offer feedback regarding these items in late January and February. Forty-eight members of our campus community have agreed to serve on theme teams to explore and suggest goals and action steps for each theme. Please review the strategic planning website, following its most recent update (scheduled for Feb. 1) and continuously throughout the semester. I look forward to continued conversation throughout the spring as we finalize the inaugural plan for Messiah University.
Enrollment update
Undergraduate spring 2021 enrollment: Fall-to-spring enrollment has brought some volatility as students responded to pandemic- and economic-related challenges. Current total undergraduate registrations are at 2,402, and projected overall FFTE for FY21 is between 2,358 and 2,363, compared to a revised goal of 2,383. More students graduated in December 2020, and there was an increase in the number of students experiencing academic probation/suspension, which adversely affects spring enrollment. The retention team is tracking these trends and others, including personally contacting students who have not yet registered. On Jan. 15, we had 208 students registered for the remote-only option, compared to 237 at the end of fall.
Undergraduate admissions fall 2021: Undergraduate admissions traffic for fall 2021 is currently tracking behind last year. Applications have been running 10-12 percent behind, and acceptances are currently lagging six to seven percent. The outlook for undergraduate enrollment nationally is sluggish at best, but we remain hopeful and are working diligently to attract and enroll an excellent group of students. Here is where things stand with this cycle compared to last year and the prior three-year average:
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Jan. 19, 2021 |
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| Fall 2021 | % to goal | Goal | Fall 2020 | Previous three-year average to date | |
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First-year Students |
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| Applications | 1,969 | 77% | 2,550 | 2,236 | 2,284 |
| Acceptances | 1,516 | 78% | 1,950 | 1,638 | 1,657 |
| Active Deposits | 171 | 29% | 580 | 169 | 216 |
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Transfer Students |
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| Applications | 89 | 31% | 290 | 127 | 119 |
| Acceptances | 40 | 19% | 210 | 54 | 52 |
| Active Deposits | 16 | 18% | 90 | 12 | 9 |
- The Common Application: was launched with the fall 2020 recruitment cycle, and 39 percent of our applicants were choosing this option at this point in the recruitment cycle last year. There has been a significant increase with the fall 2021 cycle as nearly half (49.5 percent) of our current applicants have chosen to apply via the Common Application.
- Test-optional policy: In July of 2020, Messiah University introduced a test-optional admissions policy that enables students to receive admission without submitting standardized tests. Messiah joined hundreds of other colleges and universities in developing test-optional pathways as students experienced standardized testing cancellations as a result of the pandemic. At the end of September, 34 percent of our applicants had chosen to apply as test optional. Currently 45.7 percent of our applicants have applied via the test-optional route. That percentage could continue to increase as we progress through the remainder of this recruitment cycle if test centers do not reopen.
- Transfer students: Transfer applications and acceptances are running behind our three-year average, although deposits have been ahead throughout this cycle. The National Clearinghouse Student Research Center data indicates that the pandemic has had a negative impact on the enrollment of transfer students throughout the country (particularly from lower-income and underserved populations). We are focusing efforts on local students who may want to stay closer to home due to the pandemic. Harrisburg Area Community College, our primary transfer feeder school, has recently experienced significant transition with their transfer counselors. Rusty Hoffman, associate director of transfer admissions, has placed high priority developing relationships with the new staff overseeing four-year institution relations and transfers.
- Underrepresented students: We are pleased to note that applications from underrepresented students currently comprise 22.3 percent of our current fall, first-year applicant pool, which is only a slight drop from 23.4 percent at this time last year amidst this challenging recruitment climate in which nationally there are concerns about the impact of COVID-19 and college access among this population.
- International students: The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the challenges in recruiting international students. In addition to travel/visa restrictions, families are also experiencing increased financial challenges. Thankfully, we have maintained solid interest from U.S. citizens abroad, and have cultivated a new relationship with the international students at Cumberland Valley Christian School. Acceptances and deposits are up from last year, primarily due to the number of students that deferred from last fall. Sierra Kinslow, assistant director of admissions/multicultural recruitment, was unable to travel to Malaysia in the spring due to COVID restrictions, and international travel is on hold for the foreseeable future, but Veronica Yap (our onsite representative for Messiah) continues to maintain strong relationships with our contacts in Malaysia.
Spring 2021 visitation and recruitment events: On Jan. 11 we began our new year of hosting on-campus visits and tours. With the start of the spring semester, we will now include individual faculty meetings with prospective students during visits. We will be able to accommodate up to 12 families per day in the spacious conference rooms of the Kim S. Phipps Admissions and Welcome Center. We also continue to:
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- Offer two on-campus Saturday visits per month (February, March, April) for up to 15 families as well as virtual Saturday group sessions.
- Host several on-campus mini events (limited to 50 families) throughout the spring for both accepted students and inquiries.
In addition, we are working with colleagues in Campus Events and faculty to explore several school-specific and departmental mini-events this spring. We will also offer one all-school virtual Accepted Student Preview Day and one all-school virtual Open House. Due to the potential for increased restrictions and limitation on campus this spring, we do have a Plan B for all event types including virtual options.
Graduate enrollment FY21: Overall graduate student enrollment remains strong. The FY21 fiscal year budgeted credit hour goal is 14,811. With 13,331 registered credit hours, we have realized 90 percent of our goal—with additional enrollment to occur between now and June 2021. Comparing where we are this year to where we were last year on Jan. 8, 2020 we are:
- Ahead 46 new students (293 this year versus 247 last year)
- Ahead 79 unduplicated students (885 this year versus 806 last year)
- Ahead 2,108 credit hours (13,331 this year versus 11,223 last year; 90 percent to goal this year versus 89 percent to goal last year)
Giving update
Overall giving FY21: We are grateful for the ongoing support of our donors as we continue to track ahead of last year in overall giving. Presently we have received more than $4.2 million gifts (70 percent of our June 30, 2021 goal), which is $325,000 ahead of last year at this time. Total gifts and new pledges total over $6.9 million (58 percent of our June 30, 2021 goal).
The Messiah Fund: The Messiah Fund (annual giving) total is $651,309, which is 50 percent of our June 30 goal. One key aspect of our spring Messiah Fund effort will be our annual Giving Day, scheduled for April 22. Matching gifts have been secured to help encourage alumni, parents and friends to make a donation during that one-day giving event. We also have expanded ways for donors to support the Messiah Fund, including adding categories to assist students most impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, and to support the University’s PPE and related efforts to keeping Messiah open and safe.
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FY21 Giving Update as of Jan. 20, 2021 |
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| Gifts Received | Messiah Fund /
Operating |
Gifts Received and
New Pledges |
| $ 4,230,352 | $ 651,309 | $ 6,934,779 |
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June 30, 2021 Goals: |
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| $ 6,030,000
70 % of goal |
$ 1,300,000
50 % of goal |
$ 12,030,000
58 % of goal |
Learning for Life, Transforming the World: The Campaign for Messiah University – May 21, 2021 Campaign Kick-Off Event: Our upcoming $75 million capital campaign seeks to propel Messiah toward university excellence with a renewed emphasis on a high quality Christ-centered undergraduate education, and an expanded focus on graduate and adult learner programs. Generous donors have already laid the foundation for this campaign. On May 21, 2021, we anticipate celebrating significant fundraising accomplishments and highlighting new opportunities to further support our students as we officially launch the public phase of the campaign.
Campus facilities news and progress
Kim S. Phipps Admissions and Welcome Center: On Friday, Dec. 4, we officially opened this wonderful new facility designed to welcome prospective students, families and other campus visitors—as well as provide centralized services for our current students. Thank you to everyone who worked to move the undergraduate admissions team into their new space before Christmas break so that they could begin hosting prospective students and their families in early January. We anticipate celebrating the official dedication of this facility in April as part of the spring board of trustees meeting (COVID-19 restrictions permitting).
Demolition of Hoffman Hall and completion of the campus green: With the completion of the new Admissions and Welcome Center, and the move of all personnel out of Hoffman to Old Main before Christmas break, we are now focused on the demolition of Hoffman and the completion of the campus green. Due to some scheduling challenges, asbestos removal in Hoffman began the first week of January. Witmer Masonry is on site to salvage some brick and the date stone that will be used in the green space to mark the location of Hoffman. Asbestos removal is estimated to take a little more than two weeks, after which time, utilities will be shut off, and demolition of the building is planned to begin on Jan. 21.
Depending on weather, it will take about four weeks to totally remove the building. After that process is completed, the site will be cleaned up, final sidewalks will be installed, and we will be ready for the planting of spring grass. If the weather cooperates, this project will be completed at the end of March.
This beautiful new campus green will transform our central campus, providing space for students, employees and campus guests to gather and enjoy the blessings of community. I am already anticipating a lovely campus 2021 Christmas tree lighting experience in this new space!
Good news about Messiah
Here is a sample of some recent highlights about the success of Messiah University’s programs and people. For more details visit messiah.edu/news, Messiah’s official Facebook page at www.facebook.com/MessiahUniversity/ and the Bridge magazine www.messiah.edu/the_Bridge (the source sites for many of the below news items).
- Congratulations to Professor of History David Pettegrew, Director of the Messiah University Honors Program Jim LaGrand, and to their students, mostly history majors, who contributed to a special issue of the journal, “Pennsylvania History,” on Harrisburg’s historic City Beautiful Movement and Digital Harrisburg. The issue won an Institutional Achievement Award from the Pennsylvania Museum Association: https://pamuseums.org/awards/
- Thank you for your generosity to Messiah’s 2020 United Way employee giving campaign. Our total contribution was $39,125, an amount for which we are grateful to be able to share with the surrounding community where it is needed the most during these difficult times. I appreciate the way Messiah’s faculty, staff and administrators continue to serve the common good of our region and beyond.
- Congratulations to Messiah Esports head coach Theresa Gaffney, as she was recently named eFuse’s “Most Impactful Women in College Esports” list! Read more about Coach Gaffney’s success in ‘truly creating one of the best esports programs in the nation at Messiah’ here: https://bit.ly/33aC988
- Congratulations to Messiah wind conducting student and North Hills High School band director Len Lavelle, and his students, for being recognized by the National Band Association as the Blue Ribbon Award Winner for the Eastern Division. The award is only given when a school program meets the objective standards of a Program of Excellence. Lavelle is a student in the Master of Music in conducting program at Messiah University. “What attracted me to Messiah was how applicable the coursework is to my teaching,” he said. “Not only have the faculty helped me to grow, but they are genuinely interested in helping our program grow for our students.”
In closing
The past 10 months have offered many lessons for all of us, including an increased awareness of the need to express gratitude to others—sincerely and frequently. Thank you for what you do every day in support of our mission.
Warm regards,
Kim S. Phipps, President