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SANBORNE, L. 2023. CEDAR RAPIDS, IA: RUFFALO NOEL-LEVITZ. 312 PP.
The third edition of Strategic Enrollment Planning does more than just build on the previous two editions. This new and expanded edition includes the same chapter topics, plus a new chapter, but almost all with different authors, some of whom wrote other chapters in the 2nd edition, writing under very different circumstances compared to the previous edition in 2016. Since then, U.S. institutions face new or greater challenges in the economic, demographic, social, and political arenas caused by or exacerbated by a multi-year global pandemic. Plus, each chapter author this time was asked to "think from a DEI framework" when writing their chapter, and this is evident in several areas.
After a necessary context-setting introduction in chapter one, chapters two through eight give the fundamentals of the strategic planning process (SEP) itself, while chapters nine through fourteen read more as a primer on the standard pieces of strategic enrollment planning, ending with conclusions in chapter fifteen. Aided by plentiful data tables, colorful and at-a-glance graphic illustrations throughout, and more than 100 references, this book is a vital guide to the strategic enrollment planning process and its key traditional elements. I appreciate that the book makes sure to distinguish SEP as distinct yet related to SEM, particularly in chapters two and eight.
In the title of chapter one, The Future of Higher Education and the State of the Strategic Enrollment Planning Imperative, the use of the word "Imperative" is deliberate. If the last ten years were the most challenging ever for U.S. higher education, the book predicts the next ten will be at least as challenging. Providing data from 2000 and forward, this chapter gives concise, yet breathtaking multi-decade spanning data tables and summaries often leading to humbling predictions about economic, demographic, demand, and competition trends over the next decade. This of course helps stress the importance of SEP, to optimize when you can, and to watch for areas of opportunity such as in the area of new programming.
Chapter two, Building a Culture of Strategic Enrollment Planning, takes on the challenging topic of building campus culture around strategic enrollment planning and is heavily referenced with strategic planning literature. Fundamental to SEP, this topic is appropriately...