Tuesday, February 20, 2024

New Features Added to StandOut® Classroom for Virtual Learning

Some exciting new features have just been added to StandOut Classroom, the first schedule-free classroom that eliminates absenteeism and enriches the learning experience. 

  • New, patented communication and research tools enable students to ask and respond to questions and dive deeper into anything referenced in the lecture, directly through the electronic transcript. These tools support self-guided exploration and enriched learning for students.
      
  • New, PEAK performance analytic feature measures user engagement data and provides graphical analysis on students’ interaction with videos uploaded to the platform, measuring variables such as cumulative watch times, annotations, use over time, user retention, and more.
      
  • New transcription bookmarking enables bookmarks created by students to be shared or kept private. Bookmarks are also available for reviewing in a separate location.  


Learn more about StandOut Classroom – schedule a free demo at:

standout-classroomsales@collegenet.com


Friday, January 26, 2024

The Tenth Annual Social Mobility Index Reveals Encouraging New Trends in Higher Education

The 2023 Social Mobility Index (SMI) was released in December, marking 10 years of ranking U.S. colleges and universities according to how well they advance educational opportunities and successful outcomes for economically disadvantages students. A quick look at the rankings reveals Cal State and CUNY schools dominating the top 20 spots, with California State University, Dominguez Hills placing number one. It’s exciting to see state schools take pride in advancing access and opportunity across multiple campuses/institutions. California, New York, and New Jersey ranked the highest in social mobility by state. 

While State schools in California and New York have historically led the national in social mobility as measured by the SMI, this year highlights a remarkable shift from the norm: the advancement of typically low-scoring elite institutions. For example, Harvard University moved from 1363 in 2022 to 363 in 2023, and Stanford University jumped from 1260 to 236. 

We're looking forward to seeing which schools take another leap in supporting social mobility in 2024 and which schools continue the excellent work they’ve been showing in the last few years.  

The Top 20 SMI Schools for 2023 

1. California State University – Dominguez Hills 

2. Winston-Salem State University  

3. California State Polytechnic University – Pomona 

4. CUNY Lehman College 

5. Farmingdale State College 

6. CUNY Bernard M Baruch College 

7. California State University – Long Beach  

8. California State University – Los Angeles 

9. California State University – Northridge 

10. New Jersey City University  

11. CUNY Brooklyn College 

12. CUNY City College 

13. California State University – Channel Islands 

14. California State University – Fresno 

15. CUNY John Jay College of Criminal Justice 

16. California State University – San Marcos 

17. SUNY Buffalo State University  

18. The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley 

19. CUNY York College 

20. California State University – Sacramento  

Visit https://www.socialmobilityindex.org/ for the full 2023 SMI ranking.  


Tuesday, December 5, 2023

CollegeNET Enjoyed Reconnecting with Customers at November Conferences

November was a busy month for CollegeNET and conferences! Our Series25® team attended three conferences: PACRAO, AACRAO SEM, and MSACROA.  

The 2023 Pacific Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers (PACRAO) Conference was held in downtown Portland, Oregon in early November. We enjoyed welcoming our West Coast Series25 customers, as well as lots of curious newcomers, to our hometown. 

Soon after, we traveled to Seattle for the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers (AACRAO) Conference, which focused on strategic enrollment management. This conference was another great opportunity to greet our scheduling customers from across the country, as well as new schools who were interested in learning more about Series25. We also enjoyed having the company of our partner Courseleaf. 

The end of November saw us in Pocano Manor, Pennsylvania for the 2023 Middle States Association of Collegiate Registrars and Officers of Admission (MSACROA). The conference was well attended, and many people stopped by to share stories of how CollegeNET scheduling tools have made their work easier and more efficient. It was a pleasure reconnecting with so many great customers including Carnegie Melon, University of Maryland, SUNY Purchase, Desales University, West Chester University, Monroe College, and Pennsylvania State University. We’re looking forward to seeing everyone at next year's MSACROA conference in Baltimore!  


  


 

Thursday, October 26, 2023

The SMI is Featured at the National Social Mobility Symposium at California State University, San Marcos

Jim Wolfston, President of CollegeNET, Inc. and developer of the Social Mobility Index (SMI), delivered a keynote address during the national Social Mobility Summit at California State University, San Marcos, on October 5, 2023. The Social Mobility Symposium is designed to convene the leading voices in social mobility among academia, think tanks, and policymakers throughout the country. Mr. Wolfston discussed the imperative of shifting the value system in US higher education from the pursuit and celebration of wealth to one that prioritizes access, opportunity, and social mobility for all students. 

A highlight of the Symposium was the student panel, where students shared their personal stories, detailing the obstacles they have overcome and the opportunities that have shaped their educational journey towards achieving social mobility. The panel offered a powerful and inspiring perspective on the real-life impact of social mobility efforts.  

The SMI measures the extent to which a college or university educates economically disadvantaged students (with family incomes below the national median) at lower tuition and graduates them into well-paying jobs. In determining institutional ranking, the SMI considers proportion of endowment dedicated to supporting under-resourced students, among other metrics. It also considers the extent to which each institution eschews any bragging or other promotions that draw attention to the U. S. News & World Report College Rankings.    

The 2023 SMI Rankings will be released this fall, revealing which schools have improved their social mobility outcomes over the past year.   

Learn more about the SMI and find the 2023 rankings here. 


 

Friday, April 7, 2023

The CollegeNET User Conference Returns to In-Person, July 16-19, 2023

 

CollegeNET welcomes its customers back to Portland, Oregon this summer for three days of information-packed seminars and workshops, plus lots of opportunities to reconnect with friends and colleagues from across the country. After the past several years of virtual conferences, CollegeNET staff are looking forward to hosting their software users again, with a focus on exciting new technology and a big dose of Portland hospitality. 

Register before May 26 and save $100!

Visit the User Conference Site to register or get more information.  



Friday, July 29, 2022

Thanks to Our Customers for Another Successful User Conference!

It was wonderful to welcome back so many familiar faces and meet many first-timers during CollegeNET’s annual User Conference in July. More than 1,100 attendees from colleges and universities across the country participated in three days of FREE online workshops and seminars and enjoyed demos of CollegeNET’s latest innovations.

 As in prior years, folks who attended provided plenty of enthusiastic feedback, including “Outstanding!” and “Appreciate all the hard work!” But our favorite sentiment of all had to be:

 “You people ROCK!!" 

 A warm “Thank you” to everyone who joined us for this year’s User Conference. We’re looking forward to seeing you all again, next year! 

 Check in soon at collegenet.com for 2023 dates.


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Monday, May 16, 2022

See You at the ApplyWeb CRM Webinar, May 26

ApplyWeb Users: You're invited to attend our free Webinar:

 

How to prepare for and implement annual changes in the ApplyWeb CRM

 

This information-packed webinar will cover:

 

  • Archiving profiles and applications from your last cycle

  • Preparing your users for this year's cycle

  • Updating your programs

  • Implementing your Application's annual changes into the ApplyWeb CRM

  • And more, including answers to your questions!


Date and Time: Thursday, May 26, 2022 10am PT/1pm ET

 

Register here: https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_qBeTanguQxaGzsT5gE2i9g


Monday, April 25, 2022

Join Us for the CollegeNET User Conference -- July 19-21

You're invited! The annual CollegeNET User Conference is virtual -- and free -- this year. 

Enjoy three days of free workshops, presentations, and seminars. Learn about best practices, latest product innovations, and what’s on the development horizon!

Conference Dates:  July 19-21, 2022

  

Register or Learn More

  

You can also register for optional in-depth pre- and post- conference training for a fee, which varies by class. This is not required to take advantage of the free three-day event.

  

Have questions? Please contact uconf@collegenet.com

Friday, December 10, 2021

College Presidents Are Speaking Out About Social Mobility

Presidents of colleges and universities that have maintained strong positions in the newly released 2021 Social Mobility Index (SMI) published by CollegeNET, Inc. are speaking about the growing importance of their missions in the face of both Covid-19 and diminishing social mobility in the U.S.  

Here's what some university presidents are saying: 

S. David Wu, President, Baruch College, CUNY — “For the seventh consecutive year, Baruch College ranked #1 in the nation on CollegeNET’s Social Mobility Index (SMI), the premier benchmark recognizing colleges that move students from low-income families into good paying jobs. The CollegeNET #1 ranking has once again confirmed Baruch’s unique value proposition — achieving academic excellence while advancing the social mobility of our students. At a time when the value and relevance of a college education is increasingly questioned, our ability to propel students from all social and economic backgrounds to excellence and opportunity is more important than ever before.”

Michelle J. Anderson, President, Brooklyn College, CUNY — “Once again, Brooklyn College’s transformative work helping students into rewarding careers has been recognized in the Social Media Index for 2021. As we continue to work our way through one of the most challenging periods in our nation’s history, our focus continues to be offering whatever assistance our students need to succeed. Whether it be in the classroom or emotional and financial support, enhancing Brooklyn College student success is our number one goal.”

Saúl Jiménez-Sandoval, Principal, Fresno State University — “Fresno State University has been ranked among the top five universities in social mobility [by CollegeNET’s SMI] for the fifth consecutive year …This ranking shows how Fresno State University transforms its lives through world-class comprehensive higher education, which directly empowers the economic and social landscape of the community.” 

Stephen Percy, President, Portland State University — “A new ranking from CollegeNET places PSU in the top 10% nationwide for social mobility and No.1 in Oregon at 114th out of 1,549 institutions … This recognition is proof that our focus on serving students and having a transformative effect on their lives is working. Building economic opportunity and preparing students for meaningful futures speaks to the core of who we are.” 

Patti Neuhold-Ravikumar, President, University of Central Oklahoma — “We are incredibly proud to have [CollegeNET’s] nationally recognized data and ranking as evidence of living our mission to empower students. UCO offers students a promising path to socioeconomic success and a runway to a bright future,” 

Richard Yao, Interim President, California State University, Channel Islands — “To hear that CSUCI has been rising steadily in the [Social Mobility Index] rankings … is gratifying, but we’re especially pleased to hear that our students are continuing to succeed during a persisting pandemic.” 

Deborah Curtis, President, Indiana State University — “We’re proud to have been recognized once again by CollegeNET for Indiana State University’s life-changing education and its impact on our students. Improving lives and serving the public with high-quality, affordable higher education is at the core of our distinct mission.”

Thomas A. Parham, President, California State University, Dominguez Hills — “Our university’s stellar performance on the Social Mobility Index is a testament to both the academic and co-curricular mission of the Dominguez Hills campus, and the dedication and commitment of our faculty and staff.”


Monday, November 8, 2021

Free Webinar: 25Live and 7Point Solutions - Uniting Events and Facilities Management

Get valuable tips on event and facilities management during our free webinar:

25Live and 7Point Solutions: Uniting Events and Facilities Management

November 18, 2021 11:00 AM, Pacific Time (US and Canada)

A lot of important details get added into a 25Live event. So how do you ensure everything your client requests gets done, especially if you’re not the one doing the tasks?

Join us for our November webinar, when we’ll discuss an exciting integration between 25Live and 7Point Solutions. 

Scott Anderson, the Co-Founder of 7Point Solutions, and Chris Chappell, the Associate Director for Events and Conferences at East Carolina University, will showcase how 7Point Solutions can be used to see and track information in real time, so you know which tasks are getting done and who’s responsible.

 Learn how to simplify your event management and ensure success!

 Register here: for November 18.


Thursday, September 2, 2021

Free Webinar: Academic Features in Series25 Scheduling

Join us for a free webinar Thursday, Sept. 16, 2021, 11:00 AM Pacific Time; 2:00 PM Eastern 

Learn how Series25® enterprise-wide scheduling can help you meet the demands of our ever-changing higher education landscape.

September's webinar will highlight academic features of interest. We'll talk about new functionality, including the Meeting Pattern Grid and Section Analytics, in addition to important academic topics such as binding in the Series25 LYNX Interface.

Register here:  https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_04XEc3M7QZuLFDhTbz8l2Q

Note: Once you register, you’ll receive a follow-up email with more information.


Wednesday, August 25, 2021

Thanks to Everyone Who Attended the CollegeNET User Conference!

 It was great re-connecting with the 1,200+ customers who attended the 2021 CollegeNET User Conference in July (held virtually for the second year). Attendees participated in three days of online workshops, seminars, and demos.

During the conference, we were pleased to hear from folks how Series25® scheduling tools have been helping them weather the COVID storm. For example:

“I don’t know how I would have made it through the crazy last year without all of the on-the-fly updates and improvements from CollegeNET.” – University scheduling administrator

Other customer comments included:

"Thank you all SO much for all the recent additions and improvements. Definitely making my job and my life easier!”

“OOOOHHHHHH outstanding!! You guys have outdone yourselves!”

“This was the best session so far. So many new features. Thank you, Mike and CollegeNET Team!”

“Great Job guys with X25!!! Love it” 

“CollegeNet did AMAZING work this year!!!”

“You guys ROCK!”

A warm “Thank you” to everyone who joined us for this year’s User Conference. We’re looking forward to seeing you all again, next year! 


Thursday, June 17, 2021

RIGGED Documentary Now Streaming at riggeddocumentary.com

 

A must-see for anyone concerned about the growing wealth and opportunity gap in the U.S., RIGGED is the new award-winning documentary that shows how to transform US higher education into an engine of opportunity that rebuilds public trust in our institutions and strengthens our national competitiveness and stability.

Winner, Best Full-Length Documentary

    Toronto Film Magazine Festival

 

Official Selection 

  • Montreal Independent Film Festival
  • Toronto Documentary Feature & Short Film Festival
  • Direct Online Monthly Film Festival
  • TMFF – The Monthly Film Festival

Watch the full-length documentary and trailer here.


Wednesday, April 28, 2021

Free Discussion for Academic Schedulers: “The Transition Out of Socially Distanced Scheduling” May 6 at 11:00 AM, PDT

 


The second of two CollegeNET-hosted discussion sessions for academic schedulers will help schools plan for their return to on-campus instruction.  This informal conversation will allow schedulers to compare notes with other schools and brainstorm different approaches for transitioning out of socially distanced scheduling. 

The first session, held in April, filled up quickly. Many participants reported that the Schedule25® Optimizer was very helpful in adjusting to closures during the pandemic, and schedulers are continuing to rely on the Optimizer as their schools prepare for the move away from socially distanced scheduling.

How is your campus planning to make this transition to Fall and Winter scheduling?  Join fellow schedulers to share experiences and ideas and learn from the insights of your colleagues.

Join the discussion:
 
May 6 at 11:00 AM, PDT

Register here 

Thursday, April 8, 2021

CollegeNET Hosts Free Discussions for Academic Schedulers: The Transition Out of Socially Distanced Scheduling - April 22 and May 6 at 11:00 AM, PDT

To help schools plan for their return to on-campus instruction, CollegeNET will facilitate informal discussion sessions for academic schedulers. These conversations will allow schedulers to compare notes with other schools and brainstorm different approaches for transitioning out of socially distanced scheduling. 

Fall and Winter scheduling needs are variable and subject to change. Many schools are being asked to be flexible: some schools plan to meet in person, some are completely virtual, and some land in the middle. How is your campus planning to make this transition?  

Join these free discussions to share ideas, ask questions, and learn from the insights of your colleagues.

April 22 at 11:00 AM, PDT  (FULL)

May 6 at 11:00 AM, PDT

 Register here 






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Wednesday, March 10, 2021

"No Other Product Offers This!” -- University of Utah Students Get Career-Ready with StandOut Video Interviewing Practice

Recognizing that strong video interviewing skills are becoming essential for students preparing to enter the job market, Stan Inman, Director of the Career & Professional Development Center, at the University of Utah, began searching for a video-based system that would help the school meet that challenge.

Career coaches at The U envisioned a self-service tool that would enable students to practice and review on their own time. But they also hoped to find a practice platform that would allow students to share their videos with them – as well as with mentors, parents, and peers – to review and give feedback.

StandOut was chosen and implemented at the Career & Professional Development Center and quickly became popular among students, who can now practice, record, and review interviews on their own time; and among career coaches, who appreciate having a robust platform to enhance their coaching services. 

 “The ability to create a database of questions organized according to specific disciplines and careers is extremely beneficial,” says Mr. Inman. “We were impressed with the overall quality of the product, but particularly the AI language scoring technology. No other product offers this! CollegeNET’s stability in the higher ed market was also a big selling point. We know we can count on the company to provide continued upgrades and enhancements.” 

StandOut Video Interviewing Benefits:

  • Self-guided practice and re-recording 
  • Feedback from mentors, instructors and peers 
  • Speaking skills scored via AI and cognitive computing 
  • Unlimited customizable questions 
  • Scalability and adaptability to classroom settings 
  • Boosts confidence and speaking skills 
  • Ideal for English-as-a-second-language students 
  • Develops critical interviewing skills in the age of social distancing

Read the full University of Utah success story here:
https://www.collegenet.com/pdfs/CN-F-887-Univ-Utah-Customer-Success.pdf

To learn how StandOut AI video technology can improve career services, campus hiring, and admissions interviewing on your campus, contact sales@standout.com.

 


Monday, February 22, 2021

Free Webinar: Campus-Wide Scheduling with Series25

Join us for a free webinar Wed, Feb 24, 2021, 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM PST 

Learn how Series25® enterprise-wide scheduling can help you meet the demands of our ever-changing higher education landscape.

Over the last year, we've all learned the need for flexibility in campus scheduling to handle unforeseen changes. Now, more than ever, it's essential to see everything happening on campus. Let us show you how to plan for more efficient, responsive scheduling.  

You'll learn how Series25 is your best resource for:

  • Optimizing academic classroom scheduling with bi-directional communications to all SIS types
  • Efficiently scheduling simple vs. advanced events across campus(es)
  • Achieving a seamless scheduling workflow
  • Knowing what's happening across campuses at all times
  • Tracking location utilization and ensuring proper social distancing
  • Communicating changes during emergencies
  • Saving money

 Register here: https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/5063676969630870029


Tuesday, January 12, 2021

The New CollegeNET 25Live and CourseLeaf CLSS Integration Combines Course Scheduling and Automated Best-Case Room Placement for Optimal Schedule Building

 Integrating 25Live® and CLSS® technology allows schedulers to quickly and efficiently select the best room and class section pairings 

By enabling access to 25Live classroom data while building a course schedule in CLSS, the new integration eliminates the need to move between systems. Now, schedulers have additional functionality and flexibility to plan multiple scenarios, forecast demand, and create an optimized course and room schedule.

We’re tremendously excited about this integration and expanded partnership,” said Julia Noonan, CollegeNET’s Vice President of Sales. “We’ve worked closely with CourseLeaf for some time now to serve our mutual clients’ needs. We’re pleased that this latest collaboration enables room schedulers to leverage 25Live technology when creating their class schedules.”

“We are excited about this integration because it adds yet another tool - our Look and Book functionality - to CLSS that enables institutions to make better scheduling decisions utilizing data pulled from 25Live,” said Lee Brintle, CourseLeaf CEO.  “We consistently work with our partners to deliver additional value to our customers, and we could not be more thrilled to work with CollegeNET on this integration.” 

Learn more here:

https://collegenet.com/company/news/CourseLeaf.html



Monday, December 21, 2020

CollegeNET's StandOut AI Video Practice Prepares Students to Excel in Job Interviews

The StandOut® video interviewing system boosts confidence and develops critically important interviewing skills in the age of social distancing

Here's the latest customer feedback about StandOut:

“As soon as we looked into StandOut, we understood it was more impressive than anything else on the market. The bank of questions, the ability to customize questions, and the AI speech recognition all blew us away. It perfectly complemented the work we were already doing on career and professional development. It’s really a plug and play model – we were up and running with it in three days. And the students immediately loved it. It’s easy to use; they can review and re-record their practice interviews, and they get instantaneous feedback. We see it as a game changer.” – Bradley Bond, PhD., Dean and Associate Vice President for Graduate Studies at Northern Illinois University Graduate School

“The platform is intuitive and quick to learn – easy for students and advisors to navigate. Our students have the ability to re-record and watch their practice interviews; they can reflect on and share their responses with me, as well as invite feedback from their peers. Feedback can include verbal or written commentary about eye contact, distracting mannerisms, clarity of speech, answering all parts of a question, and so on. This kind of experience boosts students’ confidence, helps them learn to speak clearly, and succinctly, and to elaborate effectively. They tell me StandOut interviewing practice is their favorite part of the course.” – Elizabeth Wilkins, Ph.D., Professor and Coordinator of Graduate Career and Professional Development at NIU

“StandOut builds online interviewing skills that are critically important especially now, during COVID-19. The system’s bank of questions and the ability to customize questions were huge selling points for us. Plus, closed captioning allows for accessibility, along with visually reinforcing the questions being asked.” – Elizabeth Wilkins

Learn more here:

https://corp.collegenet.com/pdfs/CN-F-861%20NIU%20Customer%20Success.pdf 



Wednesday, December 2, 2020

The 2020 Social Mobility Index (SMI) Recognizes Schools that are Advancing Economic Opportunity, Even in the Face of a Pandemic

California and New York colleges and universities dominate the list of top 20 institutions in advancing social mobility.  

See the 2020 SMI rankings here

The 2020 Social Mobility Index has been released at a time when Covid-19 is disproportionately affecting low-income students, forcing them to abandon, delay or alter their pursuit of a college degree and the potential that degree provides for social mobility.

"One of the many silent killers of this disease is that it is taking higher education away from too many students," says Dr. Marcheta P. Evans, President of Bloomfield College in New Jersey. "Those affected the most have been first-generation college students and those who face tremendous economic and social challenges to begin with. Ultimately, we are seeing our own epidemic in higher education. Great students, students who in the process of creating generational change for themselves, are being robbed not only of an education but the opportunity and the ability to create a better future for themselves." 

"We may all be in the same storm, but we are most certainly not all in the same boat," Carol Christ, Chancellor at UC Berkeley, stated in her recent pandemic message to students.

Higher Education is the most important asset in reducing the growing wealth gap in this country


According to Jim Wolfston, President of CollegeNET, Inc.,"If we can distribute higher education across the economic spectrum, we can optimize our nation's human capital development, prepare the next generation for citizenship, and ensure social and economic opportunity.

"Unlike other college rankings that are aimed primarily at helping students select a college," says Wolfston, "the SMI helps families and policymakers determine which colleges are addressing the national problem of economic mobility. Administrators have a better chance to help strengthen US economic mobility and the promise of the American Dream if they can identify and learn from colleges that are skilled at doing this."

Learn more here: https://socialmobilityindex.org/

Wednesday, November 4, 2020

CollegeNET Continues to Help Schools Power Through the Covid Crisis

We're excited to be providing more customers the technology they need to overcome these challenging times.

Here's the latest customer feedback about CollegeNET's Covid-19 solutions:

"Even though we were all dealing with job related restrictions due to covid-19 and social distancing, not a single bit of the customer service experience had been lost while working together remotely. We fully attribute this to the excellent team at CollegeNET."
       -- Brian Popa, Technical Systems Director, Eastern Kentucky University

"This is superb! I am sending out my results to some of the areas that have been asking for data to get some feedback. To me this is pretty magical and finally gives us an idea of building traffic I am beyond excited. Thank you!!!"
        -- Lynn Chin, Assistant Registrar, Stony Brook University


Learn more about CollegeNET solutions for powering through covid at collegenet.com



Friday, September 25, 2020

CollegeNET Presents “Powering Through Covid Via Innovation” during the 2020 EDUCAUSE Annual Conference, Oct. 27-29

The Annual EDUCAUSE conference, "The Best Thinking in Higher Education IT," is being held online for the first time, October 27-29. During an era of unprecedented challenge, the EDUCAUSE conference brings together professionals and technology providers from around the world to search for solutions to the urgent issues facing higher education today.

Find conference details and registration at:

CollegeNET’s virtual booth, “Powering Through Covid Via Innovation,” will showcase patented video interviewing and scheduling technologies that boost efficiencies -- especially during times of social distancing. Learn how Series25® Scheduling and StandOut® Video Interviewing enable institutions to:

  • Stress-test “what-if” scenarios to optimize your campus distancing plans
  • Experiment and optimize room capacity adjustments in bulk
  • Create alternative schedules to minimize transition congestion
  • React to, update, and synchronize needed changes with the super-fast LYNX SIS interface
  • Offer interviews to all prospective students without the need to meet in person
  • Preserve the major benefits of in-person interviews through Dynamic Scripting™ 
  • Learn and apply best practices via our social distancing consulting services

Here’s what customers are saying about CollegeNET technology for social distancing:

Series25® Scheduling and Modeling Facilities for Social Distancing
“The Optimizer has been a phenomenal help. I’ve been able to run scenarios for leadership and am able to inform them on what will and won’t work. We never could have done that before!”
 – Michael Gable, The Ohio State University

StandOut® New Patented System for Safer, Scalable Admissions Interviewing
“The StandOut platform was incredibly helpful and easy to use. StandOut was a success and a great tool overall for the transfer students applying to Yale.” – Marisa Kogan, Yale University


















Thursday, August 13, 2020

University of Hartford Creates Award-Winning Calendar with 25Live Publisher

When a massive redesign began on the University of Hartford website in 2018, administrators turned a critical eye to their existing calendar systems.  

“We’re a very decentralized university, and a lot of our schools were using their own systems for scheduling,” says Leonard Bretton, Hartt Facilities Manager and 25Live Administrator. “Some used HTML pages to show events; some made their own Outlook calendars. At the time, we only had about three offices using 25Live and only five calendars from those offices. We really had to start thinking creatively about how we were going to bring everything together.” 

Over the course of 15 months, Bretton worked with Craig Campbell, Director of University Web Communication, to overhaul the university website and online calendar. While Campbell and the Office of Marketing and Communication created a new, modern design for the site, Bretton brought 19 university offices and organizations into 25Live and used the Publisher tool to create readable and accessible online calendars. 

 “We needed a forward-facing calendar that was readable, accessible, and that wouldn’t duplicate events,” says Bretton. “Publisher gave us the tools to do that.”    

When the new website launched, administrators submitted it to the 35th annual Educational Advertising Awards. The EduAd Awards is the largest, oldest, and most respected educational advertising awards competition in the country. Sponsored by Higher Education Marketing Report, the 35th Annual EduAd Awards received over 2,350 entries from over one-thousand colleges, universities and secondary schools from all fifty states and several foreign countries. 

Judges for the Educational Advertising Awards consist of a national panel of higher education marketers, advertising creative directors, marketing and advertising professionals and the editorial board of Higher Education Marketing Report. Judges award Gold, Silver, Bronze, and Merit designations to those entrants whose programs and materials display exceptional quality, creativity and message effectiveness.

The University of Hartford site was recognized in five categories, including a silver award for its online calendar. 

“Getting this award and seeing what other schools did who placed even higher really let us feel validated that we’re going in the right direction,” says Campbell. “Is it perfect yet? No. But the backbone has been setup. We’re at a point where we’re able to make better decisions, and we know we have the tools to continue improving.” 

Friday, June 12, 2020

A Message from CollegeNET


The Real Way to Affirm that Black Lives Matter Is to Deliver on Equality of Opportunity.

It is often said that in the face of injustice, silence is complicit. However, words, even righteous ones, are also complicit if they are spoken devoid of innovative action and ideas. Systemic racism in the United States persists not because people in our country have been silent, but because those who have spoken have, for too long, believed righteous words alone are sufficient. They aren’t. The theory persists that if one speaks righteous words, there will be others out there who will be inspired to act, innovate, and somehow solve the problem. Or that if enough people band together to speak righteous words, then a new “movement” will generate change. Thus, words form a kind of emollient, a righteous soothing. So long as my heart is “in the right place,” I’ve done what I can. I can take solace that I am one of the good people who has added my voice for justice.

In addition to the current resurgence of sentiment as emollient, we are watching an historic wave of righteous words serving as new corporate marketing opportunity. By saying they “care,” companies and institutions can take credit for being on the good side of the issue, without offering anything substantive that could genuinely challenge or reform the system.   

At the risk of being seen as also exploiting our nation’s resurging attention to racial injustice, we are writing here to seek attention not to ourselves, but to the ideas we have been putting forward – ideas we believe can generate equality of opportunity and thereby overcome institutionalized racism. We are in the Learning Age. Therefore, if it is possible for us to change the value system of US Higher Education from one that favors “prestige” and wealth, to one that spreads access to higher education across the economic spectrum, we can not only optimize our nation’s human capital development, but provide bonafide opportunity for all citizens, regardless of their economic background or racial heritage.    

Please visit the following links to learn more:  

      www.socialmobilityindex.org 
In 2015, we created the Social Mobility Index in order to challenge the value system of “prestige” which, by favoring wealth in higher education, deprecates opportunity for Black and Hispanic families.
      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=baytxUfLamI
In 2019, we began production of our documentary, RIGGED, which lays bare a US higher education system that drives the growing gap between rich and poor in our nation.

Tuesday, June 9, 2020

COVID-19 Response: See What Schools are Saying

The CollegeNET experience goes beyond providing customers with software and tools for higher education. These unprecedented times have come with unprecedented problems, but our team is standing by to find innovative solutions to these unforeseen roadblocks. Here are just a handful of the comments we’ve received about CollegeNET’s support and customer service during the COVID-19 pandemic:

"Please pass on my thanks to everyone at Collegenet for the fantastic response you are having to COVID planning. It's been really impressive and I am grateful for how quickly your company is moving to address all the various concerns we all have. "
- Lynne Chin, Assistant Registrar for Scheduling & 25Live, Stony Brook University

“Yesterday afternoon, I communicated with our scheduling team and our supervisor, letting them know how AWESOME you guys have been during this time of uncertainty for all. We appreciate the fast speed you guys have put into providing solutions to all of your customers' scheduling needs.”
- Gelys Chacin, MALS, Sr. Classroom Planning & Scheduling Analyst Classroom Management, University of Miami

“CollegeNET has been very responsive to the unique school requests as we plan to return students to campus safely. We are very appreciative of the amazing work from our CollegeNET family.”
- Dacia Simpson, Director, Classroom Management Chair, Course Grid & Reducing Campus Density, University of Miami

“Thank you for all of your help and insight. I don't come from a technical background, and your assistance and CollegeNET's resources have made this process significantly easier than I could have imagined! I'm always blown aware with your team's responsiveness and care.”
- Jason Fowler, Coordinator for Departmental Event Advising, UMBC

"Just to pass along how (the overused word) awesome your company and teams within have been responding to left field inquiries and challenges as we all struggle with coming up with plausible solutions to the days unique and uncharted waters.”
- Michael K. Hooper, University of Arkansas

To learn more about CollegeNET’s products and services, go to collegenet.com.

Wednesday, April 8, 2020

COVID-19 Response Update: LYNX Patch to Streamline Course Schedule Changes

To help streamline the course scheduling changes that may be necessary to keep your staff, students, and attendees safe during the COVID-19 crisis, CollegeNET is adding options to the Series LYNX Interface to make creating date exceptions easier and more efficient. The patches are being released as soon as they are ready and include the following improvements:
  • Using the “Add New Date” option in Exclude exceptions will auto-fill the next date (following the previous date you entered), so you don’t have to choose the date again
  • The next date will also auto-fill when adding new Makeup and Conversion exceptions to make adding multiple dates in succession more efficient
  • You will be able to copy date exceptions to another extract set 

Customer service is our priority, especially during emergencies. If you have questions, suggestions, or tips to share on how we can help you better cope during this difficult time, please contact Technical Support (support@collegenet.com) or your Account Manager (series25implementation@collegenet.com).


Thank you for your continued use of the LYNX Interface and all Series25 tools. Stay safe and well!

Thursday, September 5, 2019

CollegeNET Presents 2019 Social Mobility Innovator Awards to 10 University Professionals

Six distinguished universities from across the country were honored at the 2019 Social Mobility Summit held in Portland, Oregon in July. The CollegeNET-hosted event gathered representatives from the six schools for a day of presentations, roundtable discussions, and recognition dinner. Each was presented with the Social Mobility Innovator award for outstanding achievements in student success and social mobility. 

The honored institutions included:

     Wichita State University, represented by Dr. Richard Muma, Provost and Professor, and Kim Sandlin, Director of Student Success
     Winston-Salem State University, represented by Craig Richardson, Professor of Economics and Founding Director, Center for the Study of Economic Mobility, and  
Alvin Atkinson, Director, Strategic Initiatives and Associate Director, Center for the Study of Economic Mobility 
     Rutgers University — Newark, represented by John Gunkel, Vice Chancellor, Academic Programs and Strategic Partnerships 
     The University of California, San Diego, represented by Lindsay Romasanta, Director, Student Success Programs, and Jeff Orgera, consultant and former Assistant Vice Chancellor for Student Retention & Success 
     The University of California, Santa Cruz, represented byGwynn Benner, Assistant Vice Provost for Student Success 
     New Mexico State University, represented by Tony Marin, Assistant Vice President of Student Affairs, and Dacia Sedillo, University Registrar 

Each of these outstanding institutions was identified for their achievements in student success based on their ranking on the Social Mobility Index (SMI), which ranks US 4-year institutions according to how well they admit first-generation and under-resourced students, support their academic success, and prepare them for well-paying jobs once they graduate. The goal of the SMI — now entering its sixth year — is to help redirect the attribution of "prestige" in the higher education system toward colleges and universities that are advancing economic mobility.

The sixth annual SMI rankings will be published during fall 2019. For more information about the SMI and to see the 2018 SMI rankings, visit www.socialmobilityindex.org.

Thursday, August 15, 2019

CollegeNET Hosts the 2019 User Conference: “Harmonizing the Individual & Collective Interest”

The annual CollegeNET User Conference took place this July in Portland, Oregon, with over 600 participants and attendees from higher education institutions around the country. The three-day conference offered more than 140 demonstrations, workshops, and seminars presented by CollegeNET employees and customers. Attendees saw the latest products and features in action, received hands-on training from CollegeNET developers, and heard helpful advice and inspiring case studies presented by colleagues. As in years past, CollegeNET also treated attendees to the sights and culture of the beautiful Pacific Northwest with a variety of tours, activities and local entertainment. 

Our Whitewater Rafting Excursion

CollegeNET partnered with Crowd Compass to provide mobile apps and an event website for the 2019 CollegeNET User Conference. This exciting new feature gave attendees the ability to select their personal schedule, complete session surveys, and download session presentations, the printed program and other useful documents. In addition, fun interactive social features allowed users to connect easily with CollegeNET staff and other attendees. 

Comments from this year’s attendees included:

"I want to take the opportunity to say Thank You for the awesome conference and constant excellent service to your users. CollgeNET employees ROCK!"

“I love the app and app features. I enjoyed networking with other colleges and universities. I forgot to bring business cards. I quickly realized with the app, that I did not need to carry business cards around.”

“This is one of the best conferences that I've attended in a long time.  Hopeful to come back next year.  Thank you for a job well done!”

The next CollegeNET User Conference is scheduled for July 19-22, 2020. Registration opens in February at: collegenet.com.


Happy Hour Reception at our Headquarters


Opening Event: Al Fresco Dining, Downtown

Wednesday, July 17, 2019

Central Arizona Finds Clever Solution for Mascot Scheduling Challenge

For over 40 years, the Vaquero has been CAC’s official mascot. In the early days of the institution, select students would sometimes dress in western attire and assume the mascot role for school events. Over the years, it became clear that a costumed character was desired by all, so school officials set to work on designing their collegiate cowboy.

Students, staff, and faculty districtwide were asked to participate in the voting process to decide the look of the Vaquero, from his hat to his chaps. The votes were tallied; the costume was designed; and “Vaquero Pete” finally made his debut during the 2018-2019 academic year.

With a new celebrity in town and five campuses for him to represent, CAC administrators needed a way to manage the many requests for Pete’s time.

“When we launched Vaquero Pete, we knew that we would need some type of a scheduling program or software,” says Angela Askey, Executive Director of Public Relations and Marketing. “There needed to be a way for our campuses, programs, and departments to go in and request the Vaquero for any specific events or activities they may be hosting. We also needed the ability to block off days and times if the mascot was already assigned to an event, if our student employees weren’t available to wear the Vaquero costume, or if we were on holiday break. On top of that, we needed a way for everyone to view when and where the mascot would be making his appearances.”

David Kohl, Web Developer for CAC’s Public Relations and Marketing Team, has been using 25Live for more than three years to manage the institution’s board meetings and academic calendars. When the request for a new, public-facing calendar came up, Kohl was quick to suggest 25Live for the job.

“I’m very familiar with 25Live and its capabilities, so I knew what it could do and that it had all the features we needed for this project,” says Kohl. “Angela needed to enter events with a time, location, and description, and, with 25Live, we already had the tools to do that and more.”

Using 25Live’s Publisher tool, Kohl was able to quickly and easily publish the new mascot calendar to the school’s website. Once the new calendar was in place, the mascot requests came pouring in. Pete is now available to all CAC campuses, and anyone within the institution is able to view his schedule online. Event organizers can plan their activities around when the mascot is available, and fans who want their picture taken with Pete can easily track where the mascot will be appearing next.

The flexible options available within 25Live have allowed the CAC marketing team to denote which student employee is responsible for each appearance, and the ability to create recurring events with a single entry has saved the group time and energy. Those events can then be published to Pete’s online calendar with ease using the 25Live Publisher tool. With an innovative use of the 25Live system, administrators were able to turn a daunting challenge into a straightforward process for all involved.

“To try to coordinate the appearances for multiple campuses and for multiple events, it was critical that we have a tool to help us organize Pete’s schedule,” says Askey. “25Live and the 25Live Publisher tool have been able to fill that need for us, and everything has been working very smoothly.”

Photo Credit: CAC Marketing Staff