Fort Schuyler Magazine Fall 2020

BY ODALIS MINO

F E A T U R E

The impact of COVID-19 reverberated throughout all divisions of Maritime College, affecting every aspect of the College including Admissions, Athletics, the Regiment of Cadets and instruction. The sudden onset of the pandemic required a dramatic shift in how students were recruited, oriented to college life, indoctrinated into the Regiment and instructed when the fall semester began. It became evident that new, creative approaches would be required to maintain a semblance of normalcy and provide students with a fulfilling college experience. DURING PANDEMIC C A M P U S L I F E C O N T I N U E S

ADMISSIONS R ohan Howell, Dean of Admissions, described how it was necessary to quickly change the landscape since the onset of the pandemic. He noted that Admissions, well known for its face-to- face interaction with potential students and their families, dramatically shifted its practices to virtual recruitment. “Since March, we had to create a series of recorded online, virtual events for accepted students,” he stated. “We found those events to be the most authentic way of connecting with students.”The Admissions team, which had regularly utilized social media for recruiting purposes, conducted a variety of sessions for the spring, summer and fall semesters through Instagram Live and Zoom with significant participation.

The chat feature on the Admissions web page allowed the submission of and response to questions in real time. Additionally, the feature served to benefit prospective students and families by offering them the flexibility of scheduling one-on-one Zoom meetings with each Admissions staff member, or engaging in a live chat. Despite COVID-19, Admissions successfully surpassed its enrollment goal for the fall semester by 10% for incoming students. “This achievement is due to the exceptional staff at Admissions, our campus partners, faculty and students.” Looking ahead to recruitment for the fall 2021 semester, Howell and his team

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