Even during the summer months, the work of the university doesn't stop. This is especially true for Iowa State's recruiting and enrollment management professionals, who work tirelessly to bring new classes of Cyclones to campus each fall.
To reward their efforts, the provost's office has recognized 31 faculty and staff with Recruitment Innovation Awards. The monetary awards, funded by an anonymous donor, are the fourth in a series of recognitions. Previous categories were:
- Teaching Innovation Awards, fall 2020
- Academic Advising Innovation Awards, spring 2022
- Extension and Outreach Innovation Awards, fall 2022
Here are a few examples of their work:
- Hamdy Agha, associate director for first-year recruitment in admissions, developed a series of webinars with colleagues in student financial aid to help prospective students better understand their financial aid offers.
- Mackenzie Schwartz, outreach and recruitment programs manager in the Program for Women in Science and Engineering (WiSE), developed a residential summer program for high school juniors and seniors to promote majors on campus in the sciences, technology, engineering and math (STEM). Among seniors who participated the first year, 87% accepted their Iowa State offer of admission, and 63% enrolled in STEM majors last fall.
- Ron Sykora, veterans certification official in the registrar's office, helped unravel complex veterans' benefit rules to help military affiliated students make sound educational and financial decisions.
- Graduate College program specialist Tiffany Kayser created a public Canvas course about human-computer interaction to answer common questions and better market the academic program to students.
- Brittany Peterson, senior assistant director of student financial aid, helped migrate Iowa State's financial aid packaging system to Workday Student, creating a competitive recruiting advantage by making timely offers to prospective students.
"Recruiting and enrollment management are critical to Iowa State's mission as a student-centered leading research university," said senior vice president and provost Jonathan Wickert. "Our faculty and staff fulfill that mission in countless ways -- from campus visits and financial aid packaging to marketing our academic programs -- and we are pleased to recognize their efforts with these awards."
Here is the full list of awardees, by college or unit:
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
- Katy Heineman, student services specialist
- Jess Shaffer, student recruiter
Ivy College of Business
- Tyler Easton, director of undergraduate recruitment
- Sam Sivaskandan, assistant director of graduate recruitment
College of Design
- Jennifer Anderson, assistant director, enrollment management and marketing
- Bryce Bonnstetter, student recruiter
College of Engineering
- Roger Bentley, transfer recruitment coordinator
- Amy Carver, graduate recruitment coordinator
College of Human Sciences
- Beth Foreman, recruitment director
- Amie Zarling, associate professor and director for undergraduate education
College of Liberal Arts and Sciences
- Kathy Houseman, director of enrollment management
- Stacey Maifeld, marketing specialist
College of Veterinary Medicine
- Dave Gieseke, communications manager
- Kathryn Kuehl, admissions coordinator
Graduate College
- Robbyn Anand, associate professor, chemistry
- Tiffany Kayser, program specialist
Academic administration
- Mackenzie Schwartz, outreach and recruitment programs manager, WiSE
Enrollment management
- Hamdy Agha, associate director, first-year recruitment, admissions
- Heidi Christensen, assistant registrar for curriculum, registrar
- Matt Dikeman, assistant registrar
- Isaac Ehlers, senior assistant director, student financial aid
- Kim Ferguson, orientation assistant director, new student programs
- Brylee Groskreutz, guest relations coordinator, admissions
- Sarah Heller, business systems analyst, student financial aid
- Emily Johnson, business systems analyst, admissions
- Nathan Orts, systems analyst, admissions
- Brittany Peterson, senior assistant director, student financial aid
- Cecilia Regueira, data analyst, enrollment research and analytics
- Ron Sykora, veterans certification official, registrar
- Jonah Tompkins, data analyst, enrollment research and analytics
- Cole Westphal, admissions counselor, admissions
