ADMISSIONS Q&A

ADMISSIONS Q&A WITH DUANE EMERY

DIRECTOR OF ENROLLMENT MANAGEMENT

As Duane Emery has taken on his new role as Director of Enrollment Management, he has done it in the midst of multiple obstacles: school began six months into the COVID-19 pandemic, he was new to the school, and was forced to forge relationships with existing parents in some non-traditional ways. Along with Erica Harrison, the longtime Enrollment Management Assistant, they had to find the best ways to engage with prospective parents without the traditional face-to-face meetings. He and Harrison tackled these challenges, along with numerous others, in his first year at the helm. The best way to understand the numerous adaptations and innovations that they have put forth is to hear about them in his own words.

TALK ABOUT SOME OF THE CHANGES YOU HAVE MADE SINCE COMING TO SYCAMORE.

In addition to spending a great deal of time trying to meet current parents to become engaged in the school community, I have focused on utilizing technology more effectively to tell the Sycamore story since it is more difficult to have groups of potential families visit the school. The admissions section of the website has been enhanced to include more information about

identifying and understanding gifted students, a more robust alumni outcomes page, more detailed information about the various visit opportunities, and a virtual tour. Additionally, we have begun offering virtual “Wednesdays with Sycamore” events in lieu of in-person Wednesday tours. We did offer an in-person Open House this fall, but had had to adapt to keep visitors and our own community safe in doing so.

A NEW VIRTUAL 360 TOUR IS NOW AVAILABLE FOR NEW PARENTS TO ACCESS. HOW HAS THAT HELPED?

I think the availability of a virtual tour has always been important, but the pandemic makes that need even greater. The tour is very interactive and gives the users the chance to control how they move around the school. It also allows us to include links to pages on our site as well as videos about key aspects of Sycamore. We are offering individual tours to potential families, but some families prefer the virtual option at this time, and it helps us control the number of visitors as we attempt to attract families in the safest possible manner.

HOW HAVE YOU ADAPTED THE WEDNESDAYS WITH SYCAMORE TOUR TO BECOME A VIRTUAL PIECE? WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE NOW?

Since the Wednesday tours have taken place during the school day when students are here, we opted to move these to a virtual event, unlike the Fall Open House that took place on a Sunday when students were not here. We created a video version of the

detailed presentation about the school’s mission, history, divisions, and enrollment process. Families are asked to watch this at their own leisure prior to the Wednesday for which they are registered. They also are encouraged to take the virtual tour of the school on their own. We then meet with the families at 10:00 a.m. via

Zoom, which allows (Head of School) Diane Borgmann, the Division Heads, and the Enrollment Management staff to answer questions. This actually gives families more flexibility in how they experience these events and does not require them to give up two hours or more on the actual Wednesday, which we think families will appreciate. This format is something we will consider even when families can be back in the building during the school day.

FOR PROSPECTIVE FAMILIES, HOW HAVE YOU STREAMLINED THE PROCESS?

I think that the enhancements to the website, the virtual tour, and the online presentation for the Wednesdays with Sycamore events have resulted in much more information being available to families at their convenience. We also have gone to online applications only, and the teacher recommendation process all is done seamlessly

through the application checklist now, which keeps families updated on the status of that required item. We anticipate having more individual visits with families at school, which might seem odd, especially during a pandemic. But, in that setting, we can actually individualize the process even more effectively.

IN THIS UNIQUE YEAR WITH ENROLLMENT MANAGEMENT, WHAT ARE YOUR GOALS?

My key goals include getting engaged with the Sycamore community, enhancing the student and parent ambassador programs, utilizing technology more effectively in the recruitment process, and, perhaps most importantly, developing and implementing a recruitment strategy that involves more testimonials from students and parents, increased social media presence, the attraction of more students from historically underrepresented groups, and the development of community partnerships/relationships. These goals would have been the same even if we were not experiencing this pandemic, but successfully achieving them might be a bit more challenging given the circumstances. That said, I have met with many parents and will meet with more. I have visited classrooms and will continue to do

so. I am expanding the roles of parent ambassadors and will be including more grade levels in the student ambassador program. Forming community partnerships is more challenging due to limited access to facilities, but this will continue to be central to ongoing efforts. I am not one to shy away from a challenge, and I think we have a great story to tell. n

ABOVE: THE BEGINNING OF THE VIRTUAL TOUR ON SYCAMORESCHOOL.ORG