In Morse-Ingersoll Hall on Feb. 4, Beloit College staff and faculty, eight student senators, and the Beloit Student Government President convened for the first Academic Senate Meeting of the spring semester. The Senate convenes at a time when the college’s admissions strategies and results are steadily changing and when funding proposals are being taken in from students and faculty/staff alike. The new semester has also seen the college hire a new chief financial officer and develop more postgraduate opportunities for students.
After attendees filed into Morse-Ingersoll, Provost Donna Oliver called the meeting to order and motioned for the minutes from the last meeting to be approved.
The meeting then got rolling with committee reports, starting with Associate Professor of Japanese Susan Furakawa speaking on behalf of the Academic Strategic Planning Committee (ASP). Furakawa announced that the college is seeking a change in its accreditation to offer a master’s program in partnership with other universities. Furakawa also discussed developing an umbrella policy for the use of AI in classrooms at Beloit and urged a greater understanding of the impacts of AI among faculty.
Next was Associate Professor and Sociology Chair Kate Linnenberg, representing the Faculty Status and Performance Committee. Linnenberg discussed the varying response times among students for course evaluations. While response times were down overall from previous years, some professors had faster responses than ever. She asked faculty members to consider this disparity and explore ways to rectify it.
For the findings of the Curriculum Oversight and Administration Committee, Associate Professor of Anthropology Leslie Lea Williams spoke in place of Assistant Professor of Modern Languages Amy Tibbitts. She said that the committee is currently working on “processing new course proposals.”
The Professional and Program Development Committee announced that they were halfway through their current budget and encouraged students, staff, and faculty to continue submitting funding proposals. They also touched on how they were reviewing funding proposals for this year’s Keefer Scholarship.
Professor of Environmental Studies and International Relations Pablo Toral hopped up to the podium for a brief update on academic-athletic affairs, which garnered a riotous laugh from the already dozing crowd. Toral succinctly stated, “My update is that I don’t have one.”
Following the comically truncated presentations of previous speakers, Chief Human Resources Officer Hope Ballentine delivered a lengthy slideshow on changing benefits and healthcare coverage for staff and faculty. Guiding them through the presentation, she assured staff members that, “I’m here to support you through these pathways.”
The slumber of the podium’s HDMI cable was once again interrupted by a presentation on enrollment by Vice President for Enrollment, Marketing & Athletics Karen Schedin. “The admissions team is really grinding it out right now,” Schedin said, although with improved results. Beloit College has received 95 deposits from incoming freshmen, up from 72 this time last year. This is all according to data from the online portal that Schedin and the admissions office use to monitor the status of applicants.
Schedin explained that admissions communicates with 100% of the applicants during the process, and the team has also increased the volume of applications overall and gross admittance is up by 35%. As Schedin says, “If we can’t get a lot of applications, it’s harder to fill the class.” Schedin also emphasized the need for Beloit to adapt to changing trends in higher education and how her hiring in 2024 was part of that change.
But a small liberal arts college in a post-industrial Wisconsin town does not adapt overnight, says Schedin. “It does not change all in one day, or in just six months, or even a single year.”
Admissions has also put a heavy focus on attracting students from within a 300-mile radius of the college, yielding 52 deposits in that department compared to 47 last year. Schedin displayed a chart explaining that students who file a Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA, as well as visit Beloit’s campus, enroll at a rate of 35.1%. Schedin’s reports show that 478 prospective Beloit Students have visited campus and filled out a FAFSA so far in the admissions process this year.
Schedin and the admissions team have even loftier goals, as Schedin implored staff and faculty to “Dream big. I have lots of dreams, like about winning Powerball.”
Schedin also lauded another recruiting tactic, citing the fact that Beloit College will attempt to match most competing financial aid offers if the prospective student is on the verge of a financially based decision. “Why should they be going to Ripon [College],” asks Schedin, “instead of here?”
Dean of Students Ron Watson then took the stage to deliver an update on student affairs, lauding the work of RAs, tutors, and SEAL for the additions to campus life and events and programming they have put on so far this semester.
Watson also stressed the importance of professors sending out academic alerts to students who are struggling, explaining that it is the only way that the Dean of Students Office can be activated to assist them.
Tim Leslie then introduced Beloit College’s new Chief Financial Officer, Elizabeth Moore, who was greeted with kind applause. According to Leslie, she has over 20 years of experience in the fields of finance, accounting, and healthcare.
After the microphone was passed around the room so staff and faculty could deliver announcements, Provost Donna Oliver adjourned that month’s meeting of the Beloit College Academic Senate. This meeting sets the stage for the lofty goals the staff and community have outlined, as well as how Beloit College might continue to grow and change as it adapts to a world shifting beneath its feet.
Featured image: Cian McKeown’27
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