A Note From the Editor

Dear Readers,

More and more, colleges and universities are becoming home to events of all kinds—from celebrity performances and lectures by controversial figures, to campaign appearances and even presidential debates. It's up to campus security professionals to ensure that the guests—and the public—are safe, and that campus facilities are protected. In The Main Event, Managing Editor Melissa Ezarik looks behind the scenes at the preparation that goes on for these events, and offers expert advice in the form of 24 smart moves administrators can make to prepare for their own major campus event.

Despite the economic downturn—or some would say, because of it—colleges are facing record enrollment numbers with graduating high-schoolers and displaced workers all trying to improve their education. As a result, the number of FASFA applications filed for 2008-2009 increased by 10.5 percent over the prior year. All this means that financial aid offices are under greater pressure to meet student and family needs comprehensively and quickly. In Software Serves, Caryn Meyers Fliegler examines how quality software solutions enable financial aid staff to be more productive and efficient, while giving students and families continuous, interactive access to information.

Even with record enrollments, colleges need to work harder to compete for the best and brightest students. Marketing expert Bob Sevier says he is often asked what it is that colleges and universities sell to students. His answer is that schools sell the sum of all the experiences that a student has and the opportunities they have when they leave. The college experience includes the academic experience, the campus life experience, the resident life experience, the athletic experience, and myriad others. In Managing the Experience, Sevier shows how colleges can successfully manage those experiences, instead of passively letting them happen.

Tim Goral

Editor
University Business
tgoral@universitybusiness.com