EMSS Team Members:

Good morning, and happy Thursday, all. Because I know many may be extending the three-day weekend to a four-day weekend, I am sending the division communication a day earlier than normal. I hope you are all doing well and gearing up for the unofficial start to summer with this Memorial Day weekend, and that you also take some time to reflect on the meaning of Monday’s holiday, and the sacrifices made by others so we can enjoy the freedoms that are ours. I know I’ll be spending the majority of my weekend in the sunshine at my son’s baseball tournament, and I’m looking forward to the fun!

EMSS End-of-the-Year Gathering

I am also looking forward to seeing all of you at next week’s division gathering, from 3-5 pm in the Great Hall. You should have received a calendar invitation - if you did not, or know of a colleague who did not, please be sure to contact Jess Etter.

While we received excellent feedback on last year’s carnival-themed celebration, we decided that the tumultuous end of the year for our campus necessitated a different approach for our division this time. While there is still much to celebrate, my hope and intent is that we can spend some quality time together in community, enjoying self-care activities, interacting with some soothing furry friends, and finding small ways to honor the qualities we appreciate most about each other. Refreshments will be served, and activities provided, so please make time to join your EMSS family for this time of relaxation and connection. I plan to give opening remarks soon after 3 pm, as well as some instructions for a few of the activities, so come at the beginning if you can!

Fall Enrollment Progress

While the end of the academic year created some hiccups in our enrollment pacing and introduced additional uncertainty into our likely outcomes, I am happy to report that we have seen strong application and deposit activity in the past few weeks, and we still anticipate solid enrollment for Fall 2024. You can find more details in Monday’s Enrollment Target Progress report, but I will also state that we have continued to see additional activity this week, and we are now within about 40 of Fall 2019’s deposit total, and actually 75 ahead of the year-to-date FTUG deposit total. (As a reminder, we are comparing to 2019 because that is the only other year in which we had an enrollment deposit, as we do this year). In addition, we are continuing to accept new FTUG applications through June 15, pivoting to take advantage of the large number of potential college students who are making late enrollment decisions this year. This effort is being supported by digital ads that promote the still-open application, and various other activities coordinated with Admissions and Strategic Student Communications. While this is a new strategic approach for Cal Poly Humboldt, and we will monitor the yield and eventual success of these late-applying students to guide future efforts, there is potential for these students to yield at significantly higher rates than other students. We have also extended the deposit priority deadline until June 15, acknowledging both the updated application deadlines and the delayed financial aid packaging related to the federal FAFSA changes. The Enrollment Target Progress team will continue to monitor activity and recommend strategic adjustments that allow us to remain nimble in our enrollment efforts.

Humboldt Dining

The J Dining Hall will open weekdays June 4 (lunch) – June 7 (lunch), and June 17 – July 7, then it will re-open August 5.  College Creek Marketplace is open all summer. Visit Dine on Campus for hours.

New Hires, Departures and Position Changes

Please join me in giving a heartfelt welcome to Rebecca Wood, who joined the Financial Aid team on April 22 as a Financial Aid Specialist.

Accolades

The Career Development team deserves recognition for a strong spring semester, despite significant transitions. The Career Expo & Volunteer Fair (Spring 2024) saw approximately 400+ students and 200+ employer representatives (90 organizations). Career Advising had over 200 appointments during the Spring 2024 semester despite staffing limitations.

Props to Career Development’s own Sasha Wallace who received high praise from Dr. Reitzel who stated "All in all, I must say that Sasha’s talk on resumes and curriculum vitae was one of the best presentations – No, wait! It was actually THE BEST presentation! – on this topic that has ever been given by a career development advisor during my 43-year career as a professor of communication at Humboldt State University/Cal Poly Humboldt."

The newest Career Advisor, Abby Grattidge, has hit the ground running and is responsible for a sizable amount of the 200 appointments for the Spring Semester (after only having officially started appointments in March).

Housing & Dining did an amazing job providing continued support to residents during the campus closure, providing a safe space to support their academic success. They also worked with CAPS to provide mental health support to residents during a difficult time.

The Housing & ResLife team had a smooth check out for over 1,600 students. Everything went off without a hitch!

Congratulations to the Trinity Early Learning Children's Center team on their recent family satisfaction survey.  92% rated themselves as Very Satisfied, and 8% rated as Satisfied!  These amazing survey results are due to the hard work of our Children's Center teachers, staff and Director Betsy Wilson.

Upcoming Events

Virtual Admissions Events – Admissions will be hosting "Next steps" virtual events on the following dates:  Monday, June 24; Wednesday, July 10; and Friday, July 26.

Career Summer Workshops – The Career Development Center is sponsoring a summer workshop series, which includes:

Resumania | June 21 at 1pm (Virtual) - Resume workshop + Resume Speed Reviews

USA Jobs Event | Date TBA (Virtual) - Assistance with applying to USA jobs

Self Employment as Employment | Date TBA - Learning the ins and outs of self-employment

As always, if you have items for inclusion in this division communication, share them with me via e-mail, or with the EMSS Leadership Team member in your area.

Take care of yourselves and each other,

Chrissy Holliday

Vice President, EMSS

Cal Poly Humboldt