The goal of the Admission CoP is to improve practice in admission, recruitment and attrition prevention in Jewish day school settings. The CoP brings together professional Directors of Admission and other school administrators who participate in recruitment functions. The CoP provides varied opportunities for community members to learn together, share information and ideas, solve problems, and provide support. Through telephone workshops, in conjunction with ongoing discussions on the COP listserv, members have focused on such relevant topics as:

• Choosing kindergarten readiness assessments
• Crafting admission policies for new schools
• The benefits of group vs. individual interviews
• Parent ambassador programs
• Tuition policies for faculty children and multiple children enrolled in school
• Making the case for Jewish day school education
• Building feeder school relationships
• Community outreach programming as a recruitment tool
• Admission publications, brochures, electronic communication and websites
• Counseling out students who cannot be appropriately served by the school

Through this collaboration, we generate knowledge directly related to the work we do; utilize that knowledge back in our schools; and reflect on results in order to make further modifications, as needed. The product of this iterative cycle is the development of more knowledge that is widely disseminated to the field, helping all of us to increase enrollment and improve the excellence of our Jewish day schools.

There is no charge to participate in the community, To join, send your name, professional position, and contact information to Kirk Ryan.

Conference Call Information

Smarter Enrollment Strategies Through Data. Please plan to join the Admission CoP for our January call, "Smarter Enrollment Strategies Through Data," on Thursday, January 27 at 1 pm Eastern. (Please adjust the time to your time zone.) Now that you are doing the important work of collecting data, how can you maximize the information that you are tracking to lead to strengthened enrollment strategies? This call will address how schools and admission directors can collect and use data to inform key enrollment decisions. We will engage with each other and learn from several schools that have experience utilizing their data to guide their work in admission, recruitment and attrition prevention.

Instructions for participating in this call are below. You do not need to RSVP.

Dial In:
USA Call in Number: 1-866-266-3378   Canada call in number:  1-888-444-4129
Enter Conference ID: 6173670107
Enter Password: 7353
You will be prompted to say your name.

Log On to the web portion of the call:
Go to http://www.idtconnect.com/dataconE.asp
On the left side, under Participant Log In:
Enter Conference ID 6173670107
Enter your name(s)
Enter your school name
Enter your email
Click Log In

If you have never participated in a COP Webinar, or not for a long time, we suggest that you take the following steps to make sure your computer will be able  to view the presentation. We suggest you go through these steps at least 10 minutes prior to the call.

Do this first: Go to www.java.com/getjava and click on “Do I have Java?” to make sure you have the newest version of Java on your computer.

Then do this: Go to http://www.idtconnect.com/dataconE.asp. At the very bottom of the screen, click on “System Compatibility Check.” From there, follow the prompts for “Participants Only.” If directed to do so, allow IDT to update your system. You may need to download the conferencing plug in. Once the system check is complete, return to the same website and find the “Participant Login” section to begin the call.

If you have trouble logging in, please call in to the phone number above and you will be able to talk to the PEJE facilitator right before the call begins.

Google Groups Resources

• Google Groups User Guide
• Quick Start Guide 1—How to post from an email
• Quick Start Guide 2—How to create a Google Account

Conference Call PowerPoint Presentations

• Jewish High Schools Virtual Roundtable
  December 17, 2009
• Steering Relocators and Newcomers Toward Your School: Building Relationships With Realtors
  November 17, 2009, featuring noteworthy practices from Admission CoP Members
• Building The Road Map: How To Arrive At a Strategic Marketing Plan to Drive Recruitment
  September 2, 2009, Chuck English (Guest)
• Getting the Word Out at Gray Academy: A Media Relations Case Study
  May 14, 2009, Lisa Abram, Director of Advancement, Gray Academy of Jewish Education, Winnipeg, Manitoba (Guest)
• Applying Storytelling to the Work of Admission and Development Directors
  February 23, 2009, CoP Members- Amy Utstein, Tehiyah Day School, El Cerrito, CA, Audrey Jacobs, Soille San Diego Hebrew Day School, San Diego and Tami Warshawsky, SSDS of Metropolitan Chicago, Skokie and Northbrook, IL (Guests)
• The Marketing Tool for Today
  December 16, 2008, Madelyn Blair, Pelerei (Guest), Suzanne Kling, PEJE (Facilitator)
• Pipeline Relationships Between Day School Admission Directors and Early Childhood Directors
  November 24, 2008, Linda Mann Simansky, PEJE (Guest)
• Widening the Circle: Engaging Interfaith Families in Jewish Day Schools
  October 28, 2008, Rabbi Lev Ba'esh, Director of the Resource Center for Jewish Clergy, www.interfaithfamily.com (Guest)
• Innovative Open House Strategies: New Ways to Attract Prospective Students and Parents
  September 22, 2008
  Featuring Program Ideas from: Jewish Primary Day School of the Nation's Capital, The Ann and Nate Levine Academy, Shalom School of Sacramento, Solomon Schechter Day School of Bergen County, Soille San Diego Hebrew Day School, Solomon Schechter Day School of Greater Monmouth County
• Talking About Affordability and Financial Aid: Collaboration Between the Admission and Business Offices
  August 27, 2008,Rebecca Egolf and Stephane Acel (Facilitators), Ilene Wise and Howard Richmond, Krieger Schechter Day School, MD (Guests)
• Diverse Learners and Special Needs Students in Jewish Day Schools: Q & A for Admission Directors
  June 18, 2008, Jane Cohen, Sandi Morgan, Claudia Michaels-Brodsky and Kim Cattan from the South Area Solomon Schechter Day School, Norwood MA (Guest)
• Making the Case for Jewish Day Schools: A Discussion of RAVSAK's Spring Issue of HaYidion Magazine
  Thursday, March 27, 2008
• Turning Around The Talk: Managing Misinformation and Reining in the Rumor Mill
  February 27, 2008, Audrey Jacobs, Director of Advancement, Soille San Diego Hebrew Day School
• First Impressions Count: The Art Of Customer Service In Our Schools
  January 29, 2008, Dan Levine, Director of Recruitment and Marketing, Solomon Schechter Day School of Greater Boston (Guest)
• A Best Practice Case Study: The Parent Ambassador Program at The Epstein School
  November 8, 2007, Susan Berk, Director of Admission, The Epstein School, Atlanta (Guest)
• How Do They Decide? Understanding Adolescent Decision Making and School Choicel
  October 9, 2007, Vivian Young and Carol Jacobs, Jack Barrack Hebrew Academy, Merion PA (Guest)

Summaries of Conference Calls

• Admission Directors Can Do Everything (And Why They Shouldn't Have To)
  February 8, 2007, Rheua Stakely, PEJE Coach for Admission and Recruitment (Guest)
• Using E-newsletters to Convey Your Marketing Message and Build Relationships with Prospective Families
  January 23, 2007, Lisa Colton, Darim Online (Guest)
• Marketing Across the Spectrum: Discussion of RAVSAK's HaYidion Magazine (Chanukah 2006 issue)
  November 30, 2006 Rebecca Egolf (Facilitator)
• The Intake Process: Building Relationships with Prospective Families
  October 19, 2006, Diana Ganger, Program Director of JECEI (Guest)

PEJE Marketing Webinar Series

• Getting Everyone on the Same Page: Using Key Messages to Advance Your Day School October 30, 2007
• Using Research to Make the Case June 7, 2007

Voices from the Field: Finding Value in the Admission CoP