May 12, 2008- Today, we launched the greenest version of Connect! to date, to expand upon our eco-friendly web solutions. Along with our students, we are committed to building GREENER ADMISSIONS.
GreenConnect! has been released in conjunction with the launch of StudentsPlantTheSeed.com, a resource for students interested in taking action to encourage GREENER ADMISSIONS. Connect!’s new greener admissions rating system lets students know which colleges are converting to paperless admissions and which have yet to join the network. A link to StudentsPlantTheSeed.com lets students tell colleges they want them to convert.
Although Connect! is a secure member-based network, StudentsPlantTheSeed.com is a public site available to all students who want to encourage paperless admissions. Students not yet integrated with Connect! can petition their high school administrators to get Connect! at no charge. With Connect!, they get a comprehensive curriculum, college and career planning solution… all online. When they want to learn about colleges, they do it electronically. When they want to apply, they do it electronically. It’s the first step in eliminating the quarter billion pieces of paper processed in college admissions each year.
To celebrate the 1,000 high schools that have gone green over the past two years by implementing Connect!, ConnectEdu is replacing 1,000 trees. Our donation to The Nature Conservancy will continue to grow as our network grows. When a high school or college joins the Connect! National Network™, based on a student request through StudentsPlantTheSeed.com, we will make a donation to plant a seed. Join us in changing the way students approach college admissions.
April 22, 2008- As we approached Earth Day, we recently conducted a survey of our Connect! students to gather their thoughts on college admissions and the impact this process is having on the environment. We were surprised to learn that 65% of our students – made up of the greenest generation of our time - had not thought about the impact that all of the paper they receive and send in the admissions process is having on the environment. But, they were astonished when we told them!
We've been approaching high schools and colleges about Connect! for several years now with the benefits of eliminating the paper and moving the admissions process into the 21st Century. Save time! Save money! And, now, Save the environment!
It's no secret, students are driving green initiatives on almost every topic under the sun. They recycle. They conserve. They truly strive for sustainable living. And protecting the environment is a major concern of theirs. But now they are able to marry two of their chief interests – their college options and the environment. Students in the Connect! National Network are using Connect!, not only because it streamlines curriculum, college and career planning, but because it eliminates paper, therefore helping the environment. And they are asking colleges and high schools to join them in this effort.
High schools, like Maynard High School in Massachusetts, are bringing Connect! to their students as an eco-friendly solution. High schools are leading the charge and asking colleges to join the network so admission offices can receive transcripts electronically, high schools can stop printing paper and recruiters can meet students who want to meet them, without bursting their mailboxes with unwanted mail. And colleges are responding!
Knowing that 90% of our students are concerned about protecting the environment, and 55% want to apply to a college that practices greener admissions, we are in the process of making enhancements to Connect! to create a “greener”, more “eco-friendly” version, if you will.
For example, our students will be able to evaluate a college's green admissions practices with our GREENER ADMISSION rating system. Each of the 4,200 college profiles in Connect! will feature ratings of each college’s carbon footprint as it relates to their admission processes and the sending/receipt of paper documents vs. electronic transmissions and meeting students through electronic enrollment marketing. Colleges in our network are noted and receive additional recognition and rating benefits based on their level of electronic integration.
Plus, students who want to tell college administrators they should join the network can do so through Connect!, empowering our students to invite their high schools and colleges into a greener, more eco-friendly world of college admissions. It’s a win, win, win … for our students, for our colleges, and for our environment!
April 18, 2008-At the Annual AACRAO Meeting in Orlando a few weeks ago, it was refreshing to see how we had grown (our network, our staff) since AACRAO 07 having developed numerous relationships with colleges throughout the nation. At AACRAO 07, we focused on discussing the inefficiencies of sending and receiving paper transcripts. In fact, we stacked approximately 600,000 pieces of paper in our booth last year, and color coded those documents that get lost as well as those that suffer data entry mistakes to drive home our point. The message we delivered last year was powerful...and many attendees commented as they passed our booth this year- “Where's the paper?”.
At AACRAO '08 we were again busy delivering an important efficiency message as well as highlighting the fact that the Connect! offering has expanded to include both electronic document exchange and enrollment marketing!
Colleges around the country spend hundreds of thousands of dollars each year trying to develop relationships with potential students. Colleges buy names and addresses from multiple list management and testing companies and then begin the marketing onslaught. Often times these names are purchased with a limited amount of information on the student- zipcode, age, a standardized test score. From there, a college crosses its “fiscal” fingers and hopes that all the mail and emails that they send will result in a relationship.
Never mind the fact that today's generation of students does not monitor an email address - it's their cell phone or social network. Good luck with that!
On the flip-side, potential students have no say in this process and almost no ability to stop the direct mail onslaught. They simply take a standardized test, fill out a career interest survey at school, or enroll for FAFSA advice and the next thing they know they are flooded with direct mail. Routinely, the student has no interest in a college that blasts them, or the college may not even have the student's intended major, yet their mailbox fills up with direct marketing. The worst of it- a student and their family can't opt-out or scream “Stop” when the mailbox is full.
And let's not even mention the dollars that get spent on this stuff. We're talking literally thousands of dollars per student!
It's crazy!
As we discussed with colleges at AACRAO, there indeed is a more cost-effective and targeted method to build actual relationships with students. Colleges can now build relationships with an interested student earlier in the college preparation process... yes, before the sophomore year!...And save time and money in the process.
April 17, 2008- It’s happened in Iowa, Michigan, Missouri, Pennsylvania and now Massachusetts. College loan programs are being suspended due to the escalating credit crunch and weakening economy that continues to unravel every week. And just last week TERI, one of the primary guarantors of student loans declared Chapter 11. As reported yesterday, nearly 15,000 students in Massachusetts that previously qualified for the low-interest Stafford Plus loans from the Massachusetts Education Finance Authority (MEFA) will not be receiving money as of July 1st. MEFA was forced to suspend the loan program and now joins more than 50 other student lenders who have had to close shop.
In addition, FICO score requirements are tightening, meaning that families will have to clear a higher hurdle to be approved for financing. And with home mortgages and home values being hit, it will be difficult to secure funds from home equity.
The time to make your financing decisions is now, before the market continues to ripple and worsen! We are encouraging families to make use of the Connect! Finance Manager tools to ensure that they maximize scholarships, government loans and low-interest alternatives. In addition, be sure to utilize the Connect! budgeting tools so that you have a full perspective of your 4yr financial burden and can plan accordingly. But, by all means, take action NOW to secure your funds for next year!
Log-in to Connect! and utilize the Finance Manager! Call us if you have any questions or need assistance.
CDU Welcomes Kim Clark from U.S. News & World Report
April 9, 2008- Last week, Connect! students and parents were able to attend a free CDU Webinar that was presented by U.S. News & World Report writer, Kim Clark. Kim is an expert in the area of higher education and financial aid. She has launched a web site called Financial Aid Letter.com designed to help families with understanding the complicated financial aid process.
Kim spoke to Connect! students and parents specifically on the topic of understanding an award letter. She provided our users with key tips for making sense of the letter and even offered Connect! users the opportunity in advance to send in one of their award letters for analysis. These are the timely opportunities that we will continue to offer to Connect! users to make the transition from high school to college an easier one. As paying for college becomes more and more of an obstacle for families, we encourage Connect! users to take advantage of our new College Finance Manager as well as these free webinars.
March 20, 2008- As the Connect National Network!™ continues to expand to over 1,000 high schools, 200 colleges, and over 500,000 users in 2008, we have welcomed several new faces to the ConnectEdu team that will help us continue to better serve both our high school and college partners. From account management to product management, our new group of team members comes to us from backgrounds in education, technology, and business.
Our major focus in 2008 continues to be to provide our high school partners the support and resources that they need to be successful. Along those lines, we have added more key folks to our Professional Services team under the direction of Jim Sears, our Vice President of Client Relations. Joining the CDU team as Account Managers are Merridith Okonkwor and Ella Dunasky (both in Michigan) and Christine Canestri (Connecticut). Also working with our high school partners to make sure that counselors are receiving the training they need is our new Learning Solutions and Support Trainer, Linda Lauritano, who joins us after having worked in a local high school guidance department.
Joining the team this spring as the new cross-functional Product Manager is Justin Souza. The position of Product Manager is key at this important stage at CDU as Justin will be managing user feedback and all other activities that impact Connect! Other additions to the team include: David Silbermann (Sr. Project Manager), Adrian Mendoza (Sr. UI Designer), Dionne Frazier (Sr. Accountant), and Cary Issenberg (Marketing Co-op).
These new additions will play a key role in helping us build on our relationships with existing high school and college partners as well as add to our network. Welcome all to the ConnectEdu Team!
55 Schools Join the Connect National Network™ in January
February 27, 2008- Since the gates have dropped, we have been off to a fast and furious start welcoming 12 colleges and 43 high schools to the Connect National Network™ this past January. The network continued to spread throughout New England as the University of Massachusetts, Lowell, Daniel Webster College, and Mass Bay Community College joined ten new high schools that have connected in the New England region. In the Midwest, two new Wisconsin colleges- Carroll College and Mid-State Technical College joined thirty-one new high schools in the network. Again, we welcome the new colleges and high schools to the Connect! Community. Great job to all involved!
Below is the complete list of the new colleges that joined the network in January.
Atlantic Union College (MA) Carroll College (WI) Centenary College (NJ) Cooper Union (NY) Daniel Webster College (NH) Felician College (NJ) Goodwin College (CT) Mass Bay Community College (MA) Mid-State Technical College (WI) Regis College (MA) St. Michael’s College (VT) University of Massachusetts, Lowell (MA)
Access to Higher Education (Even During Tough Economic Times)
February 25, 2008- News out of the recent National School Boards Association annual legislative conference in Washington D.C. regarding next year’s school budgets is grim at best. As reported in eSchool News online, “about half of the 50 states are facing projected budget shortfalls” and as often times is the case technology and extracurricular activities are both going to be on the chopping block in many states including California and Nevada. As we all know, budget cuts are not new to our nation’s high schools, but this year cuts appear more ominous in light of the current economic issues facing many states.
Connect! was developed as a NO COST tool for several reasons- not the least of which would be to prevent local school boards from having to play “Edward Scissorhands” with their college and career planning resources. The primary reason that we provide the nation’s most comprehensive technology solution at NO COST is because we believe it is the right thing to do (see mission below)- regardless of a state or a school’s budget or whether or not the economy is prosperous at the time. In addition, in order to develop a sustainable network of high schools and colleges that exchange transcripts and documents electronically, the solution can not be dependent upon shrinking state budget dollars or struggling state student loan authorities. Students and their futures can not be dependent upon the changing winds of budget downturns … a sustainable solution, that is resistant to economic changes is a must!
When the dust settles and the cuts have been made, seeing what is no longer available to high school students is not what scares me, rather it is knowing that we all had a part in playing “Edward Scissorhands” with the future of these young people’s lives because we weren’t imaginative enough to pursue a sustainable plan… sad!
ConnectEdu’s mission is to democratize access to higher education and career opportunities for all students by empowering them and their advisors with the information, resources and collective bargaining power required to realize successful life-transitions.
February 20, 2008- As this week marks the 92nd Annual National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP) Conference to be held in San Antonio this year, I paused for a moment to reflect on where we were a year ago this week as we prepared for NASSP in Las Vegas. For those that know me, the pause was literally 2-3 seconds.
Last year at NASSP, we introduced ourselves to many new high school principals from around the country. For some it was the first contact with ConnectEdu and Connect!. This time last year we were partnered with a few hundred high schools and were present in a handful of states. Over the course of this past year, the Connect National Network™ grew to over 500,000 counselors, students, and parents in over 1,000 high schools nationwide. Our network has expanded to new regions including California, Arkansas, Florida and Kentucky and has continued to grow in regions such as Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, Connecticut and New Jersey.
It is appropriate that the NASSP Conference theme this year is, “Build the Team – Lead the Charge”. Over the last year we have done just this as we continue to build “our team” of dedicated high school and college partners who have begun to lead their own “charge” as they work with us to streamline the college admissions process and fundamentally change the way student’s transition to higher education and careers in this country.
This year at NASSP, some things will have stayed the same- namely, the needs of high school principals. Principals are still in search of a cost-effective, comprehensive, user-friendly solution that will allow them to create a “going-to-college culture” amongst their parents, students, teachers and guidance staff.
For those of you attending, you can visit ConnectEdu at BOOTH #648.
Admissions Folks Continue to Feel the Pain of a Paper-Based System
February 12, 2008 - At first glance they appear to be stories of improvement, of fierce competition and drive, of the electronic age of admissions. Then as you begin to peel off the skin, you realize that these are in fact stories of missed opportunities, wasted resources and an industry that desperately needs to evolve in a hurry. The stories I refer to here are the numerous articles that have been written over the last few weeks and years in fact, detailing college admissions offices being flooded with applications. From the University of Texas that enrolls nearly 40,000 undergraduates each year to Rhode Island College which just surpassed the 2,000 application mark, colleges throughout the country are seeing an increase in the number of applications that come across their desk. An increase in applications, transcripts and letters of recommendation- bottom line: an increase in workload and an increase in paper.
With the increase in applications, admissions and enrollment teams are being stretched beyond their limit as students are applying to more schools, sending more transcripts, generating larger piles of paper than ever before. The impact this is having on institutional inefficiency and the environment are mind boggling to say the least. Although small steps have been made with the online application, hundreds of thousands of pieces of paper are wasted in the form of transcripts and letters of recommendation. As Susan Peterson points out in the Daily Texan online (UT Admissions Office Sorts Final Applications, 2/1/08), the University of Texas “processes about 24,000 pieces of mail every admissions season”. That is just one school during one admissions cycle!
Can you imagine if these admissions folks were receiving transcripts sent in directly to their SIS system from the high school SIS system? Can you imagine if so much time and energy was not wasted relying on a paper-based system and more time was devoted to matching students with the right college – a college that they will succeed at?
From data re-entry, to security, to cost and environmental issues, the higher education industry needs to fast track this problem. Data security and privacy issues abound; the photo of folders stacked up with sensitive student information inside on top of an unsecured desk says it all.
February 7, 2008- I was recently forwarded a fantastic online resource that has been published by the great folks at GEAR UP and is a result of the Principal’s Call-In Session from last October’s New England Gear Up Conference.
The online book entitled, 100 College Going Strategies: New England Principals Lead The Way excited me for several reasons. As I read through the pages of strategies proposed by this group of progressive principals, I couldn’t help but notice that the underlying themes of this book point to our core values here at ConnectEdu. As I have outlined below, there is a clear synergy between what the GEAR UP organization and progressive principals are looking for to improve their “going to college” curriculum and the endless opportunities provided through Connect!
RELATIONSHIPS
Build relationships with young people as early as middle school. Through the development of these relationships, expose students to the “concept” of college and possible careers. More importantly, gather feedback from young people about their college planning needs and goals.
Build relationships with parents by introducing them to Connect! and educating them on the many ways in which the technology can make college planning and financing less complicated.
Build relationships with employers so that students are exposed to actual career opportunities earlier on in their journey.
INNOVATION
Utilize technology to streamline the “going to college” process for students and their families.
Create a comprehensive solution that incorporates all aspects of college planning in one secure, online location to make life easier for students and parents. As Jeanne Tucker, Principal at Mt. Abram High School in Maine, advocates: “Utilize ConnectEdu to provide students, guidance and families one place to track, plan, and apply for college.”
Put the feedback from young people, parents, and counselors into action as we continually enhance and at often times create new features within Connect!
RESULTS
Create a cultural change for many young people by broadening their view of what is possible relative to college and career goals. Derek Pierce, Principal at Casco Bay HS in Maine, very appropriately calls for the creation of a “college ready” culture.
A new “going to college to career” process for young people in New England and throughout the country that provides greater access to higher education. Collaborative communication between students, parents, and counselors and ultimately more college bound students.
It is great to see this synergy and to know that Connect! is a part of the strategy that these New England principals are advocating. Check out the online book.
January 24, 2008- As Connect! proliferates Maine high schools, momentum is building as students, counselors and families realize that higher education is within reach. With the help of Connect! and other progressive organizations in Maine such as Gear Up, young people in Maine are being exposed to opportunities like never before. The Connect! National Network™ continues to expand in the state as over 60 high schools are already on board along with Husson College.
Thanks to our recent Gear Up partnership, Connect! will now be implemented in all high schools using Gear Up which currently includes nearly 4,000 students from low-income families. Check out this article from The Times Record about one of our great high school partners in Maine- Lisbon High School. A great example of how Connect!, through a collaborative effort with non-profit and state organizations, is creating college access for students who may otherwise have thought that college was not a possibility. Through Connect!, students in Maine can reach their college and career goals.
It’s Arrived… Connect!'s Top 25 Colleges & Universities
January 21, 2008 - As promised, we recently announced our Annual Connect! Top 25 Colleges & Universities. The list represents the schools that were the most popular college choices among the 500,000 Connect! users for 2007. Students, with the help of parents and counselors, compile their “Connect! College List” after researching and determining best-fitting colleges from among over 4,200 detailed school profiles.
The results of this year’s list are indeed eye opening. We have a new #1 as Michigan State University moved ahead of University of Michigan for the top spot. Seven of the schools in our top ten are from Michigan including Wayne State University (#5) and Western Michigan University (#6) who have joined the list this year as well. Nearly all Michigan colleges on last year’s list have moved up. Our Michigan partners along with recent partners, University of Missouri, Columbia (#18) and University of Kansas (#21) - both new to this year’s list – demonstrate that our college partners are able to drive high school adoption and participation.
In addition, our Annual Connect! Top 25 Colleges & Universities list highlights both the selective nature and wide range of institutions that Connect! users applied to in 2007 (i.e. Harvard University #16, Cornell University #17, University of Pennsylvania #19, Brown University #20, and Yale University #22). In fact, all of the Ivies except for Princeton (#28), Dartmouth (#59) and Columbia (#142) are represented in this year’s Connect! Top 25. From large public universities to small private colleges, this list represents the breadth of students who are using Connect! all across the country to make their college and career plans.
Our 2007 Connect! Top 25 Colleges & Universities are:
1. Michigan State University 2. University of Michigan 3. Central Michigan University 4. Grand Valley State University 5. Wayne State University 6. Western Michigan University 7. Boston University 8. New York University 9. Eastern Michigan University 10. University of Massachusetts Amherst 11. Northeastern University 12. University of Connecticut 13. Rutgers University 14. Boston College 15. Oakland University 16. Harvard University 17. Cornell University 18. University of Missouri, Columbia 19. University of Pennsylvania 20. Brown University 21. University of Kansas 22. Yale University 23. University of Rhode Island 24. Duke University 25. Clark Atlanta University
Below we round out the Top 50 on our annual list.
26. Northwestern University 27. Missouri State University 28. Princeton University 29. Massachusetts Institute of Technology 30. Syracuse University 31. Quinnipiac University 32. Ferris State University 33. The Johns Hopkins University 34. Georgetown University 35. Florida State University 36. University of Michigan, Dearborn 37. University of Vermont 38. Tufts University 39. Bridgewater State College 40. University of New Hampshire 41. Washington University in St. Louis 42. The College of New Jersey 43. University of Miami 44. Penn State University, University Park 45. Drexel University 46. University of Southern California 47. University of Delaware 48. Stanford University 49. University of California, Los Angeles 50. University of Massachusetts, Boston
24 Schools Join Connect National Network™ in December
January 15, 2008- Building on the momentum of a record month in November where we signed over 20 new colleges to the Connect National Network™, the CDU team continued a torrid pace as 24 new schools, including 17 colleges, joined the network in December. Connect! continued to expand into new territories as we welcomed the University of Denver, the University of Arkansas, and Ashland Community and Technical College in Kentucky. In addition to our college growth, we also added 7 high schools, in December – which is typically a very slow month for HS growth.
Just last week, the CDU team started the 2008 year by welcoming the Columbus (OH) Public School system to the Connect National Network. Columbus Public Schools include 19 high schools and over 15,000 enrolled students. Great job to all involved and our partners.
Below are the new colleges that joined the network in December.
St. Peter’s College (NJ) Newbury College (MA) University of Vermont (VT) Ashland Community & Technical College (KY) Emory University (GA) University of Sioux Falls (SD) Davis & Elkins College (WV) Lon Morris College (TX) University of Arkansas (AR) Sterling College (AR) University of Denver (CO) Westminster College (MO) Johnson & Wales University (RI) Illinois State University (IL) Kentucky Mountain Bible College (KY) Gustavus Adolphus College (MN) Emporia State University (KS)
CDU Welcomes New Vice President of Client Relations
January 14, 2008- As we kick off the new year, we are excited to welcome Jim Sears as the new Vice President of Client Relations. Jim will be managing both the college and high school account management teams and will oversee all client facing activities in the near future. Jim joins CDU with over ten years of solid experience in the area of client satisfaction. Most recently, he was General Manager of Client Operations at SunGard, overseeing all services operation for North America. Jim brings with him a strong track record of performance and innovation that will be integral to our 2008 goals.
As the Connect National Network™ continues to expand to over 1,000 high schools and over 500,000 users in 2008, the addition of Jim Sears is a small piece in our overall commitment to continuing to provide the best possible service to all of our high school and college partners. Building on the relationships with our existing colleges and high schools and listening to their needs will be a major focus for CDU during our exciting growth in 2008.
CDU welcomes Jim Sears to the team. We also welcome your valuable input as we start a new year and continue to change the college admissions process in this country. Feel free to email us with your ideas, suggestions, etc.. Happy New Year!
December 17, 2007- As numbers are almost through being crunched, we are getting excited to once again announce our 2nd Annual Top 25 Colleges & Universities. Ok, so our Top 25 list may not create the controversy that the BCS (Bowl Championship Series) will create in college football this holiday season, but the results nonetheless will turn some heads. Early polls are indicating that we may have a new #1 as well as some new schools joining our list.
Our Top 25 Colleges & Universities are based on the number of students choosing the college for their college list. College lists represent the schools to where students will use Connect! to apply this year. Connect! students have already applied to nearly 2,500 colleges and universities in the U.S. this year.
Stay tuned for the posting of our list in early January…
Congratulations to CDU Team Member, Jeff Alderson and his Acappella Group- Overboard
December 14, 2007- Our very own Director of Strategic Partnerships, Jeff Alderson and his acappella group Overboard have been selected among thousands as a Top Five Finalist in the CBS News Early Show/Boyz II Men Acappella Competition. If Jeff and the rest of the members of Overboard win the competition, (and we are certainly all pulling for you Jeff) they will be performing this Wednesday, live at CBS in New York City at 8:00 AM with yes – Boyz II Men.
We are also thrilled to be having Overboard perform this evening at the CDU Holiday Party. Best of luck Jeff!
Click here to watch the announcement of the finalists.
December 5, 2007- The Connect! National Network! has quickly become the nation’s largest “going-to-college-to-career” web solution. We’re the only solution with integration that builds a data bridge between high schools and colleges…and more importantly for students focusing on college choice…we’re national, so students are not limited by state borders.
A recent news story featured Connect! in Ohio and showcased a student making college plans to one of our college partners in Michigan. As our regional networks strengthen, we expand opportunities for young people and help them find the schools that are a best fit, regardless of location.
Check out this great story below from WTOL-TV in Toledo.
November 29, 2007- This Fall the Connect! National Network™ has welcomed a record number of colleges and universities. In November over twenty new institutions joined the Connect! Network, highlighted in our recent press release. In addition to expanding our network nationally, these additional partners have strengthened our regional networks in Missouri, Michigan and New Jersey.
With four new colleges – Central Christian College of the Bible, Drury University, Washington University and William Woods University- our total participation by colleges in the Show Me State is now 20. In Michigan, Ferris State University became the 13th college to join the Michigan network and in New Jersey, we welcomed both Bloomfield College and Montclair State University to our expanding east coast network.
This fall we’ve also launched Connect! in new states including North Dakota, West Virginia, Illinois, and Tennessee. In Massachusetts and Kansas, we are establishing a two-year to four-year pipeline as more community colleges in those states recognize the value of an integrated web solution to streamline admissions and the transfer process.
While these state and regional networks continue to grow, more and more students are enjoying national exposure to higher education. Good stuff!
November 6, 2007- When I think back to my own education, much of what I have learned relative to leadership, character, relationship building and determination was the result of numerous “out-of-classroom” experiences. Whether it was speech & debate, student government, or athletics, the student, the entrepreneur and the person that I am today was largely shaped by opportunities that were not part of my core academic curriculum.
With the latest release of Connect! v.5.0, we introduced C!Opp- a new feature that exposes students to “out-of-classroom” educational opportunities directly through Connect!. These opportunities range from leadership to study abroad to service learning programs. C!Opp is designed to broaden horizons, introduce new opportunities, and show students that the world is their classroom.
In addition, C!Opp was designed to insure that overworked counselors or underfunded guidance departments still have the ability to introduce their students to a variety of fantastic learning opportunities, each of which has a high correlation to college-bound rates. We are open to suggestions with C!Opp, so if you know of an “out-of-classroom” program that provides students with fantastic experiences, please let us know.
Connect! Counselors Sending 200+ Transcripts and Letters of Recommendation Daily
October 31, 2007- While the college admissions cycle for Fall 2007 is just beginning and applications are just starting to flow, CDU has already processed documents to nearly 508 different colleges/universities. Connect! high schools are, on average, sending 200+ transcripts and letters of recommendation DAILY!
If you are a college on this list and you are not registered for C!Doc – our FREE electronic transcript and letter of recommendation solution – we would encourage you to make the lives of HS counselors and students everywhere much easier by getting your institution registered.
October 23, 2007- The Register, a weekly newspaper in Western Massachusetts, ran a great article earlier this week featuring Ludlow High School and their utilization of Connect!. In the article, Ludlow High School’s Director of Guidance Arlene Tierney and Counselor Linda Duame point out several of the key benefits that both the high school and the students are experiencing with Connect!:
-It’s Comprehensive… tracking of the entire college process for counselors to monitor student’s progress across each step of their college/ career planning
-Free… which allowed Ludlow to end the contract with a similar solution that was charging them $1,000 per year
“It’s great because we’re saving money for our school, and it’s also cost-saving for students, too,” said Tierney.
-Simplification of the process itself… user-friendly service that allows students convenient access at both school and home
“The entire registration process for each student is simple. It’s a two-part process, and it only takes about 15 minutes,” said Duame.
-Utilization… their kids are using Connect! and are already sending out college applications, and by the end of the school year all students will be registered
“We have only 49 seniors and 41 juniors left that need to complete registration,” said Duame.
-Service… the Guidance Department at Ludlow High has taken advantage of free service and training from their CDU Account Manager and has been provided with “excellent technological service”
-Growth… the Connect! Network™ continues to expand both in New England and throughout the country providing students at Ludlow, with more opportunities
“Although ConnectEdu is a fairly young company, it is expanding rapidly, grabbing the attention of many school systems throughout New England,” said Tierney and Duame.
Connect! v.5.0 Offers a Solution that States Have Been Waiting For
October 19, 2007- On a recent trip to the Midwest, I met with state education officials and educational professionals both from public and private schools (high school and post secondary). After a great discussion with the group, a couple of the attendees tracked me down in the hallway. They wanted to discuss the comprehensive nature of Connect!, and specifically they were curious if Connect! was simply college focused or if it included an integrated (automated coordination with the HS’s Student Information Management System) COLLEGE AND CAREER solution.
So as I stood there listening to their questions and their reasons for why such a solution was needed, I was unable to hold back the grin on my face. Not only were they exactly right, but we had just deployed Connect! v5.0 that morning.
With the release of Connect! v5.0 (this past Monday) - we have marked a new path in providing high school students, parents and counselors with a comprehensive, integrated Career and College Planning solution. As our CTO stated at our internal ‘release party’, “Our team has ventured to boldly go where no organization has gone before when it comes to providing students with a comprehensive college and career planning solution. Our curriculum guide and its interconnectivity to the high school student information system, careers, college majors, as well as actual college and employer profiles is a first step in answering the age old question facing young people – ‘Just what the heck does this class have to do with the rest of my life?’ … and a darn good first step, I might add.”
The tireless efforts of the CDU design and development team, coupled with the direct feedback from our high school advisory board and beta schools, has resulted in an innovative solution to help students, families, and counselors make education and career transitions in a thoughtful, integrated manner.
In v.5.0, students are able to create curriculum plans to map out the courses they plan to take at their high school based on graduation requirements and incorporated transcript data. In addition to being able to track their progress relative to graduation requirements and their curriculum plan, students are able to map their curriculum plan to one of over 300+ careers that are now included in Connect! and over 150 majors that may lead to those careers.
We even added information on over 27,000 employers so that students can research the organizations that specialize in their areas of interest.
In addition, the normalization of high school curriculums and course guides provides our college partners with a unique opportunity to begin to normalize plans of study across multiple high schools as they make admissions decisions … further leveling the college access playing field!
For counselors and parents, v.5.0 provides the tools necessary to engage your students and begin to develop and complete their “road map” to success!
Kudos to our design, development and advisory teams for producing a solution that is sure to change our industry as we continue to help families navigate both college and career transitions.
For more information on Connect! v.5.0 call us at 888-887-8380.
October 10, 2007- NACAC 2007 lived up to the hype as both NACAC and the City of Austin were great hosts for this year’s annual conference. While in Austin, I was thrilled to see the number of current partners that stopped by to see us at the booth or came out for the CDU Late Night. It was great to spend time with our current partners as well as have numerous discussions with those looking to join the Connect! Network.
NACAC for me is about these relationships – rekindling the old and getting acquainted with the new as well as spending time with our own field based team. As Connect! spreads from state to state and provides more access to higher education than ever before, our relationships with our partners (counselors and admission officers) are at the core of our organization.
October 4, 2007- Numbers, as you know, can be used to serve many purposes and are often manipulated and inflated in our industry. But when accurate, numbers can tell a story. At ConnectEdu, we have experienced incredible growth over the last 12 months … and not all of this growth can be captured in numbers, but let me give it a shot:
•From 75 high schools to over 1,000 •From 15,000 registered students to over 500,000 •From 15 employees to 75+ •From 1,000 recurring visitors per day to nearly 7,000
During the middle of last week alone, we experienced a 300% increase in the number of daily visits.
ConnectEdu is no longer the new kid on the block in the college admissions process. More and more, high schools, colleges and community colleges are joining our network and deploying a better, more streamlined way to manage the “going to college” process. The numbers are one thing, but the real story is in the opportunity to help so many more students realize their goals!
April 18, 2008-At the Annual AACRAO Meeting in Orlando a few weeks ago, it was refreshing to see how we had grown (our network, our staff) since AACRAO 07 having developed numerous relationships with colleges throughout the nation. At AACRAO 07, we focused on discussing the inefficiencies of sending and receiving paper transcripts. In fact, we stacked approximately 600,000 pieces of paper in our booth last year, and color coded those documents that get lost as well as those that suffer data entry mistakes to drive home our point. The message we delivered last year was powerful...and many attendees commented as they passed our booth this year- “Where's the paper?”. 
At AACRAO '08 we were again busy delivering an important efficiency message as well as highlighting the fact that the Connect! offering has expanded to include both electronic document exchange and enrollment marketing!
