Read about Coursemate p. 6 & 7
tuesday, may 7, 2013
Indiana’s Oldest College Newspaper
Incoming class of 2017 is more diverse and has a higher average GPA By Noelle Witwer news@thedepauw.com
Some high school sophomores and juniors got one of their first glimpses of life at DePauw Saturday. DePauw’s Spring Preview day draws students from all over the country who are just beginning their college search. “We’ve passed the May 1 deadline, so we are finished with next year’s class. Now we have turned to recruiting the class of 2018, giving them a feel of DePauw and encouraging them to come back,” explained Emily Fry, admissions counselor and event coordinator of this Saturday’s preview day. According to Fry, the day’s activities will include a tour, information session and choice of financial aid discussion or student panel. “I think so many websites look so similar. When you come to campus, you get a sense of what the student body and campus are actually like,” Fry said. Making a good impression on students early on helps to improve the university’s chances of securing a class. DePauw is working to increase class size, diversity, average GPA and to reduce costs. According to Dan Meyer, vice president of admission and financial aid, these four qualities of an incoming class are four qualities that the admissions team always aspires to. “For the class of 2017, we’ve actually hit all four of these markers,” Meyer said. According to Meyer, there will be about 680 students in the incoming class of 2017, which is a 12 percent increase compared to last year’s 601 students. In addition, the average GPA of the incoming class is 3.74, which is slightly higher than last year’s average GPA of 3.60. The class of 2017 has greater diversity: 10
percent of the class is composed of international students, and 22 percent are domestic students of color. “China is most represented, as usual, but there are also some students from places like Ghana and Sweden,” Meyer said. “We have a lot more students [in the class of 2017] from the Chicago area.” Sophomore Colleen McArdle has been a student tour guide since November. “From the [prospective students] that I’ve talked to throughout the semester, we will have a wide variety of students,” McArdle said. “Usually there are lots of students from the Midwest, but I’ve seen lots of students from California and some from New York.” Another difference that McArdle noticed was academic. “When I got a chance to talk to them, they weren’t all just bio and political science majors. There were a wide variety of interests,” McArdle said. According to Meyer, raising the academic profile at DePauw is a long-term goal. While recruiting the class of 2017, the admissions team decided to dramatically limit the number of admits with a GPA lower than 3.1. There were over 100 fewer admits with GPA’s lower than 3.1 this year, compared to last year. “I would like to see change inside and outside DePauw, with students more focused on academic endeavors,” Meyer said. Fry characterized “the DePauw student” that the admissions team searches for. “They’re leaders with academic focus who are involved outside the classroom as well,” Fry said. “They are students who can continue our legacy and who show that they would be suited to the DePauw lifestyle.”
675
increase incoming 12% from last first years year’s 601
10% domestic 22% students of color average 3.75 GPA 50 55% 45% international students
students taken with GPA 3.0 and lower
Vol. 161, ISSUE 48
Trustees approve Casey’s second term, Divest DePauw efforts By Dana Ferguson news@thedepauw.com
Last week the Board of Trustees voted to renew DePauw President Brian Casey’s contract, extending his term for another five years. Casey took the position of university president on July 1, 2008. In his first five-year term as president Casey has been an integral part in helping Greencastle win the Stellar Communities Grant, he began a seven-year capital campaign and worked on completely rebranding the University. “I’m thrilled,” Casey said. “I hope in my second term I can really put my goals in action.” Trustee Marletta Darnall said the Board was pleased to renew Casey’s contract and said they hope he’ll feel as excited to remain at the university. “I’m just hoping no one else can snatch him away from us,” Darnell said. Casey said in his first five years at DePauw he has set a great deal of groundwork for bringing in funding for the university and regaining connections with alumni. In the next term he hopes to create more concrete change, which will include expanding into the next phases of the DePauw 2020 plan. The Board of Trustees also considered various other issues at its spring meeting. Among these it approved the Divest DePauw proposal to invest the university’s endowment funds in more sustainable companies. The Board of Trustees’ Buildings and Grounds committee agreed to switch to the Cornerstone Investment group from the Mercer Investment group, saying the Cornerstone group supports more sustainable companies and seeks out environmentally friendly investment options. The Board also agreed to seek out more sustainability projects on campus, create a “green
Trustees | continued on page 3