Dear Colleagues:
As we approach the half-way mark of our spring term, I realize what a full and challenging semester it has already been! We’ve been fulfilling our usual roles of educating, planning, administering, serving, mentoring, recruiting and creating—while many of us are also devoting significant hours to the campus audit/prioritization process, the development of new educational programs, opportunities and facilities, and our long-awaited transition to Messiah University, which is less than four months away! As we head into spring break, I’d like to share with you an update about the winter board of trustees meeting, the campus audit/prioritization process, enrollment, giving and other campus news.
Messiah’s response to COVID-19
The rapid global spread of COVID-19 (widely known as the Coronavirus), has caused quite a lot of uncertainty and disruption in colleges and universities during the past several weeks. Messiah’s President’s Cabinet, Crisis Management Team and the International Risk Management Committee continue to monitor this international health situation in a measured and proactive way. I am grateful for my dedicated colleagues on these teams who are caring for the safety and wellbeing of our campus community throughout this situation, and we will continue to communicate as planning and decisions progress.
At this point, we have not made the decision to move classes online, As circumstances in our region continue to change, however, we are closely watching and following the recommendations and advisories from state and national health agencies. Please read this important information about what you need to know about COVID-19 before spring break, and continue to follow Messiah’s emergency blog and watch your campus emails and text alerts. We will use these means of communication to reach out to you with any new developments.
Summary of the January board of trustees meeting
Messiah’s board of trustees held their annual winter meeting on Jan. 26-28. The board participated in a substantive cultural intelligence training session led by Dr. Sandra Upton of the CQ Intelligence Center. Dr. Upton has also facilitated sessions at Messiah for campus leadership. The session focused attention on board members’ individual personal development and their corporate development as a board dedicated to Messiah’s commitment to inclusive excellence, rooted in the scriptural commandment to love God and neighbor as we pursue reconciliation.
In addition, Dr. Jennifer deCoste, vice president for strategy at Credo, led the board in an introductory session to the board’s role in strategic planning. Dr. deCoste will be working with our campus community (beginning in April 2020) to create and implement the first strategic plan for Messiah University.
From the Committee on Education: The primary board action from the winter session was the board’s review and approval of term tenure renewal and promotion of faculty members as presented based on the recommendation of the Term-Tenure and Promotion Committee, the provost and the president.
Update on prioritization target and progress
In the fall of 2019, as president, I informed the campus community of the board of trustees’ mandate to bring college spending in line with current and projected revenue by reducing institutional expenses by a minimum of $5 million as of June 30, 2024. Two campus task forces were formed to work on this prioritization process, which is key to setting the stage for Messiah University’s planning for a fiscally healthy future. The Educational Program Task Force, led by Provost Basinger, was assigned a minimum target of $2.7 million and the Administrative Program Task Force was assigned a minimum target of $2.3 million. At a later date it was determined that a targeted amount for institutional costs, which span the work of both task forces (employee benefits, utilities, etc.), would be assigned a minimum target of $400,000.
The task forces have worked diligently to identify projected savings approaching $6.4 million with careful attention to maintaining the strength and quality of the student experience. Due to current student enrollment trends, our fall 2020 undergraduate enrollment target needs to be adjusted downward. This projected reduction in the size of the incoming undergraduate class, accordingly reduces net tuition revenue over the next four years as well. Therefore, to help offset the anticipated budgetary impact, the Executive Committee of the Board of Trustees took action on Feb. 28, 2020 to increase the College’s prioritization target to $7.5 million by June 30, 2024. As we begin to implement the savings already identified, the Provost’s Cabinet and President’s Cabinet will work throughout this summer, and over the next two years, to identify additional savings, from all areas of the institution. Messiah’s upcoming strategic planning process will incorporate all of the task forces’ data and good work, along with the other aspects of the campus audit process (brand perception survey and ACE enrollment management review) to develop future enrollment and budget projections that are strategic, data-driven and position Messiah for long-term institutional and financial health.
Regarding the FY21 budget—given the good work of campus leaders, task forces and budget directors, it is anticipated that the projected deficit for FY21 will be successfully addressed in the draft prioritization recommendations from the prioritization task forces (which are due to President’s Cabinet by March 20, 2020). Therefore, I hope to forward the proposed employee salary increases proposed by governance groups to the board for final consideration in June 2020. I will communicate the board’s decision about compensation increases to the campus community no later than June 20, 2020.
CREDO campus audit update
In addition to guiding the work of our campus prioritization task forces, Credo has been a valuable partner in leading our broader campus audit, which will inform our upcoming strategic planning process, starting later this spring.
Brand perception survey: One of the first phases of the campus audit was a strategic research initiative in the form of a campus brand perception survey, administered in October via email to nine stakeholder groups (prospective students and parents; current undergraduate and graduate students; parents of undergraduate students; undergraduate and graduate alumni; local HR professionals; and current employees). The survey was designed to gather data about the perceptions and opinions these groups hold about various aspects of Messiah College and the value of a Messiah education.
Employees had the highest response rate across all audiences (58 percent)—thank you to everyone who participated! Across all audiences, the data show that Messiah College is a high-performing institution with positive brand loyalty, perception and reputation. Across all survey audiences, 8 out of 10 respondents are likely to recommend Messiah College to a friend, family member, colleague, or prospective student. Further, Messiah College is considered a first-choice institution by a majority of current students and alumni, and 9 out of 10 of all respondents rate the quality of a Messiah degree as good to excellent.
The data will help inform decisions as part of our strategic planning process, and Credo’s analysis makes recommendations in the areas of: telling Messiah’s story of excellence; optimizing strategies for enrollment health; opportunities to strengthen position with stakeholders; elevating a “students-at-the-center” experience; faith formation; and engaging Generation Z. To read Credo’s executive summary of the data and to view their aggregate data report, visit the prioritization website under “Credo Resources” in the left navigation.
Enrollment ACE review: The second phase of the campus audit was the Enrollment ACE (Assess, Counsel, Empower) Review. Credo’s team of enrollment management professionals worked with a campus steering team, led by Vice President of Enrollment Management John Chopka, to assess Messiah’s current approach for recruiting undergraduate students. Specific areas of assessment included: the campus guest/visit experience; admission processes and roles; data availability and usage; utilization of recruitment partners across campus; website and marketing analysis; and existing strategic enrollment plans.
Thank you to John Chopka and the Enrollment ACE steering team for the significant amount of data and information provided in advance of Credo’s review—and to all of the various campus colleagues who took time to meet with the Credo team to discuss the ways you currently partner with undergraduate admissions. The Credo team delivered a set of preliminary recommendations following their site visit (several of which the undergraduate enrollment team has already begun to implement.) However, Credo is preparing a formal report, with a full set of recommendations, which they will deliver within the month. An executive summary of the report will be made available on the prioritization website at www.messiah.edu/prioritization.
New “learning for life” educational program development
The COE Senate recently approved parameters for a general education program designed exclusively for undergraduate post-traditional adult learners. All of our new online undergraduate Adult Degree Programs (ADP) will require this smaller and more transfer-friendly general education program, which is aligned with Messiah’s Undergraduate Learning Objectives. The COE Senate also approved Messiah’s first two online degree completion programs: RN to BSN and a B.A. in Business Administration. We are finalizing the curriculum and marketing of these programs and our first online certificate program in digital marketing in preparation for a fall 2020 launch.
Emerge Education, an online program management (OPM) company, will partner with us to market, recruit and enhance support services for our new undergraduate Adult Degree Programs and existing graduate programs in nursing and business. Emerge’s expertise, experience, additional personnel and financial resources will enable us to launch our programs and grow to scale on a more aggressive timeline. Other academic disciplines under consideration for ADP development (certificates and degree completion) include data analytics and cybersecurity. As I declared in the State of the College address in August, this “new branch” is essential to the continued health of the College’s “tree,” and I look forward to the fulfillment of our mission on behalf of new student audiences.
Enrollment snapshot
Undergraduate enrollment: Undergraduate admissions applications and acceptances for fall are currently tracking closely to the prior three-year average. With that, however, students are waiting longer to commit, causing early deposits to lag. We still have seven weeks until the May 1 national deposit timeline, the enrollment team is diligently following up with students to secure their deposits. Additionally, several of our scholarship programs (Honors, Multicultural, Arts, and Humanities) are currently extending offers to new students, and we anticipate securing more commitments as a result of our March Accepted Student Preview Days.
| March 10, 2020 | |||||
| Fall 2020 | % to goal | Goal | Fall 2019 | Previous three year average to date | |
| First Year Students | |||||
| Applications | 2,432 | 92% | 2,650 | 2,555 | 2,463 |
| Acceptances | 1,869 | 93% | 2,005 | 1,895 | 1,866 |
| Active Deposits | 337 | 54% | 629 | 369 | 416 |
| Transfer Students | |||||
| Applications | 179 | 62% | 290 | 183 | 181 |
| Acceptances | 98 | 47% | 207 | 96 | 99 |
| Active Deposits | 36 | 41% | 87 | 16 | 24 |
Graduate enrollment: We are actively recruiting our fourth cohort for the Master of Occupational Therapy (MOT) program and our second cohort for the Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT). We anticipate a full cohort of students for both programs. At this point in the fiscal year, 854 graduate students have enrolled for a total of 13,145 credit hours (vs. 787 students and 11,423 credit hours by mid-January last year). We have already reached 104 percent of our credit-hour goal, which exceeds where we were last year at this point having reached 102 percent of our fiscal year goal (graduate students enroll at different times throughout the year).
Admissions and welcome center update
Work is progressing well on the Kim S. Phipps Admissions and Welcome Center. With the mild winter to date, the steel erection is completed and the contractors are working to close in the building. Inside the building, the concrete is being poured for the individual floors. On site, while a bit muddy, the team continues to work on moving and installing utilities and new sidewalks, including the one that opened, leading to McBeth Advancement Center and Starry Field. Kathie Shafer, vice president of operations, reports that the project is behind schedule, due to permit delays, but continues to work closely with the contractors to find schedule efficiencies. Later this spring, we will have a better sense when the building will be completed and when we can plan the corresponding move of personnel.
Giving update
Current giving: We remain on track to reach Messiah’s overall giving goal, and the goal related to gifts and new pledges, by the end of the fiscal year. For the Messiah Fund goal, we continue to focus on raising as many unrestricted dollars as possible, and I am pleased to report that we are $50,000 ahead in Messiah Fund giving from last year at this time.
FY20 Giving Progress Report
As of Feb. 28, 2020
| Gifts received | Messiah Fund/Operating | Gifts Received and New Pledges |
| $ 4,209,188 | $ 754,632 | $ 8,630,071 |
| June 30 Goals: | ||
| $ 6,030,000 or 70% of goal |
$ 1,300,000 or 58% of goal |
$ 12,030,000 or 72% of goal |
“Give Big” Annual Giving Day: One of the key ways to help us raise new Messiah Fund dollars is our annual Giving Day, “Give Big,” which will be held on April 2. Give Big, is a 24-hour social media-driven event, during which we have a goal to raise $125,000 for our students. Donors can choose to give to one of five designations: the Messiah Fund; Messiah Athletics; the Collaboratory; sustainability programs; and service and missions programs. Please consider helping us reach our goal by:
- Following Messiah College on Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat and Instagram to see the progress of this exciting event and join the celebration of Give Big.
- Making a donation to support an area of campus that is most significant to you. On April 2, employees can make a gift at messiahgives.com or visit www.messiah.edu/payrolldeduction to begin a recurring monthly gift.
Messiah launches esports program
Messiah has launched an exciting new esports program in response to student interest and an evolving national varsity landscape. This donor-funded, five-year pilot initiative currently includes a varsity team of 13 students who began competing this spring against other collegiate and amateur teams all across the nation. Theresa Gaffney, head coach and coordinator of Messiah’s esports program, has worked in collegiate esports for over eight years at institutions including Harrisburg University and Collegiate Starleague. Gaffney is one of the few female head coaches in the country for collegiate esports teams. The team did well in their first public competition, taking fourth place in the state at the Pennsylvania Esports State Championship, held at Harrisburg University of Science and Technology on Jan. 25!
Students on Messiah’s esports team practice and compete in the newly renovated esports varsity practice space located in the basement of Mellinger Apartments. Additionally, an unused classroom next to the practice space was converted into a gaming lounge available for use by all students, providing them with a new venue for socializing. The College views the addition of esports as an opportunity to expand our cocurricular educational programming, allowing participants to connect over a shared passion and grow as students and professionals in this field at a high-quality level. To learn more about Messiah esports visit gomessiah.com/esports or following along on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Twitch at @messiahesports.
Messiah University update
The University Implementation Team continues to work to prepare Messiah for its transition from college to university on July 1, 2020. Preparations are underway for the transition of operational aspects such as campus signage and displays, print and web communications, stationery, merchandise, and other physical transitions. There are also teams working on integrating the celebration of our transition to university as part of our annual Community Day gathering in August 2020 (which will serve as our official “launch” event for employees and students), Move-in Week, and Homecoming and Family Weekend. Watch for more detailed communication on all of these events and other transitions later this spring into early summer. In the interim, you can find the most recent information at www.messiah.edu/mu-transition.
Good news about Messiah College
Here is a sample of some recent highlights about the success of Messiah College’s programs and people. For more details visit messiah.edu/news, Messiah’s official Facebook page at facebook.com/MessiahCollege and the Bridge magazine www.messiah.edu/the_Bridge (the source sites for many of the below news items).
- David Pettegrew, co-chair of the Department of History and professor of history and archaeology, recently received a fellowship for $35,000 for the 2020-21 academic year from the Loeb Classical Library Foundation of Harvard University to support his work in archaeology in the Mediterranean. This is the second time Harvard has awarded him this fellowship, the first being in 2012. At the local level, Pettegrew also provides leadership to Messiah’s work in Digital Harrisburg and the Commonwealth Monument Project.
- Todd Allen, special assistant to the president and provost for diversity affairs, was elected to the Leadership Harrisburg Area’s Board of Directors for a three-year term, effective this July. Leadership Harrisburg is a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the quality of life in the Capital Region through servant leadership, community service, and bridging people, businesses, and organizations to address the community’s greatest needs.
- Messiah College is ranked 9th in its category (Undergraduate Participation in Study Abroad: Top 40 Master’s Colleges and Universities) in the Institute of International Education’s Institution’s 2019 Open Doors report. According to Open Doors, more than 54 percent of Messiah’s undergraduate student body studied abroad during the 2017-18 academic year.
- Last month, students James Chopka ’21, Hunter Brindle ’20, Tafadzwa Chakala ’21 and Alexandra Chea ’20 were invited by the executive team at Ollie’s to present their findings after completing a project exploring the company’s marketing strategy. Ollie’s was so impressed with the class’s work that they will be implementing some of their ideas in the near future to make their stores more consumer-friendly for their shoppers. Read more.
- Congratulations to Tiffani Worthy, a business and leadership student in Messiah’s School of Graduate Studies, on being sworn into office as mayor of Willingboro Township, New Jersey. It is exciting to see our students having such positive influences in their communities! Read more.
- Congratulations to alumnus Josh Kerr, who received a recent Grammy for his role in co-writing the Best Contemporary Christian Music Performance/Song for “God Only Knows” by for King & Country. Read more about Josh’s career.
Athletics highlights
Below are some highlights since my last update from Messiah Athletics. For up-to-the-minute information about all 22 of Messiah’s intercollegiate athletic teams visit GoMessiah.com or follow the Falcons on social media at @MessiahSports.
- The Messiah women’s basketball team will play in the Sweet 16 this weekend in Bedford, Mass. against the Smith College Pioneers. Messiah claimed their 12th conference championship two weeks ago and beat the Keystone Giants and Eastern Connecticut State Warriors to advance to the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament. Leah Springer was named the MAC Commonwealth Player of the Year with Jayneisha Davis and Eleana Eckley both earning All-Conference honors as well.
- Five members of the Messiah wrestling team qualified for the NCAA DIII National Championships this weekend in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Sean Redington (125 lbs.), Garret Cornell (141 lbs.), Stephen Maloney (157 lbs.), Brian Shermeyer (174 lbs.), and David Stevens (184 lbs.) qualified by finishing in the top three at the Southeast Regional, hosted by Messiah at the end of February.
- The Messiah women’s track and field team will send three Falcons to the NCAA Division III National Championships this weekend with Esther Seeland (800 Meter), Taylor Wiederrecht (High Jump and Pentathlon), and Ellissa Slader (400 Meter) all heading to North Carolina for nationals.
- Messiah swimming swept the MAC Rookie of the Year honors on both the men’s and women’s awards. Avery Barley claimed men’s Rookie of the Year honors, becoming the first Falcon to win three events at the MAC Championships (200 Back, 100 Fly, and 100 Back). Katelyn Boyce took home the honor on the women’s side, winning the 400 IM and finishing in the top-five in the 200 IM and 200 Fly.
- For Messiah men’s basketball, Colin Sareyka picked up his third-straight All-MAC Commonwealth honor this season, being honored on the Second Team. The Falcons finished the year with an 11-14 record.
- For the first time in program history, Messiah men’s volleyball received votes in the National Poll after starting the year 7-2 with a win over No. 9 Arcadia. Messiah currently holds a 12-4 record and a 4-0 mark in the conference.
- Spring sports are just getting underway. Messiah women’s lacrosse has highlighted the start of spring sports, ranked No. 24 in the country the Falcons recently took down No. 20 Scranton to vault themselves into the National Poll.
In closing
What a privilege it is to be a part of this wonderful Christian educational community with all of you. Please pray for the safety and care for of all of our students and employees who are traveling over spring break. May we all be encouraged by the impact and influence that Messiah students, employees and graduates make in our culture and society, by the upcoming celebration of the Easter season, and by our gratitude for God’s guidance and faithfulness to Messiah College for the past 110 years.
Warm regards,
Kim S. Phipps, president