Skip to content
ADVERTISEMENT
Sign In
  • Sections
    • News
    • Advice
    • The Review
  • Topics
    • Data
    • Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion
    • Finance & Operations
    • International
    • Leadership & Governance
    • Teaching & Learning
    • Scholarship & Research
    • Student Success
    • Technology
    • Transitions
    • The Workplace
  • Magazine
    • Current Issue
    • Special Issues
    • Podcast: College Matters from The Chronicle
  • Newsletters
  • Events
    • Virtual Events
    • Chronicle On-The-Road
    • Professional Development
  • Ask Chron
  • Store
    • Featured Products
    • Reports
    • Data
    • Collections
    • Back Issues
  • Jobs
    • Find a Job
    • Post a Job
    • Professional Development
    • Career Resources
    • Virtual Career Fair
  • More
  • Sections
    • News
    • Advice
    • The Review
  • Topics
    • Data
    • Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion
    • Finance & Operations
    • International
    • Leadership & Governance
    • Teaching & Learning
    • Scholarship & Research
    • Student Success
    • Technology
    • Transitions
    • The Workplace
  • Magazine
    • Current Issue
    • Special Issues
    • Podcast: College Matters from The Chronicle
  • Newsletters
  • Events
    • Virtual Events
    • Chronicle On-The-Road
    • Professional Development
  • Ask Chron
  • Store
    • Featured Products
    • Reports
    • Data
    • Collections
    • Back Issues
  • Jobs
    • Find a Job
    • Post a Job
    • Professional Development
    • Career Resources
    • Virtual Career Fair
    Upcoming Events:
    College Advising
    Serving Higher Ed
    Chronicle Festival 2025
Sign In
News

Marketing Finds Its Place on the Campus

By Eric Hoover February 29, 2016

In some corners of higher education, marketing still has a bad name. “Unfortunately, there’s a stigma that we’re shady people who cause bad things to happen,” says Rob Westervelt, executive vice president for enrollment and marketing at George Fox University, in Oregon.

To continue reading for FREE, please sign in.

Sign In

Or subscribe now to read with unlimited access for as low as $10/month.

Don’t have an account? Sign up now.

A free account provides you access to a limited number of free articles each month, plus newsletters, job postings, salary data, and exclusive store discounts.

Sign Up

In some corners of higher education, marketing still has a bad name. “Unfortunately, there’s a stigma that we’re shady people who cause bad things to happen,” says Rob Westervelt, executive vice president for enrollment and marketing at George Fox University, in Oregon.

When he came to the institution eight years ago, he recalls, a professor singled him out during a meeting, and said: “You’re a marketer, I can’t trust you.” So Mr. Westervelt asked him a question: “What happens if I say your program is awesome, and we should tell everyone on the planet about it?” The professor wanted to hear more.

Over the years, Mr. Westervelt says, many faculty and staff members have come to understand — and embrace — the idea that effective marketing is a necessity for the small Christian institution, which is heavily dependent on tuition. Since 2010 the university’s “Be Known” branding campaign, which promises personal attention to each and every student, has helped the campus frame its goals. “It’s a prescriptive vision,” he says. “It’s helped us tell our story.”

The university’s administrative structure affirms the importance of marketing. Previously, George Fox had one vice president for enrollment and another for marketing. The two divisions, which had different objectives, weren’t always on the same page.

Following a budget shortfall a few years back, George Fox combined the positions. Marrying those functions has helped the university define the terms of its success. “Everything is now measured by what the incoming class looks like — students and dollars,” he says. “Now, our customer isn’t the university — it’s the student. We think of our admissions people as marketers, and they think of themselves that way.”

Mr. Westervelt predicts that many more colleges will merge enrollment and marketing departments in hopes of enhancing recruitment. So, too, does Robert A. Sevier, senior vice president for strategy at Stamats Inc., a consulting firm, who’s seen the profile of senior-level marketing officials rise. More of them are part of presidential cabinets; more are overseeing enrollment and advancement. And more are working closely with the academic side of the house. “If your curriculum is your most important academic asset,” Mr. Sevier says, “then your chief curriculum officer is really your chief marketing officer.”

The notion that an admissions office is also a marketing office doesn’t sit well everywhere. At highly selective colleges especially, you’re likely to hear admissions officers shun the M-word, insisting that they’re “counselors” and not marketers.

That might not be a useful way for many colleges to think of recruitment, however. “If your admissions people are saying that,” says Bob Johnson, a Michigan-based marketing consultant who works with colleges, “your campus is really in trouble.”

Eric Hoover writes about admissions trends, enrollment-management challenges, and the meaning of Animal House, among other issues. He’s on Twitter @erichoov, and his email address is eric.hoover@chronicle.com.

A version of this article appeared in the March 4, 2016, issue.
Read other items in The Trends Report: 10 Key Shifts in Higher Education.
We welcome your thoughts and questions about this article. Please email the editors or submit a letter for publication.
Share
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Facebook
  • Email
Eric Hoover
About the Author
Eric Hoover
Eric Hoover writes about the challenges of getting to, and through, college. Follow him on Twitter @erichoov, or email him, at eric.hoover@chronicle.com.
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

Related Content

Marketing to Survive

More News

Vector illustration of large open scissors  with several workers in seats dangling by white lines
Iced Out
The Death of Shared Governance
Illustration showing money being funnelled into the top of a microscope.
'A New Era'
Higher-Ed Associations Pitch an Alternative to Trump’s Cap on Research Funding
Illustration showing classical columns of various heights, each turning into a stack of coins
Endowment funds
The Nation’s Wealthiest Small Colleges Just Won a Big Tax Exemption
WASHINGTON, DISTICT OF COLUMBIA, UNITED STATES - 2025/04/14: A Pro-Palestinian demonstrator holding a sign with Release Mahmud Khalil written on it, stands in front of the ICE building while joining in a protest. Pro-Palestinian demonstrators rally in front of the ICE building, demanding freedom for Mahmoud Khalil and all those targeted for speaking out against genocide in Palestine. Protesters demand an end to U.S. complicity and solidarity with the resistance in Gaza. (Photo by Probal Rashid/LightRocket via Getty Images)
Campus Activism
An Anonymous Group’s List of Purported Critics of Israel Helped Steer a U.S. Crackdown on Student Activists

From The Review

Illustration of an ocean tide shaped like Donald Trump about to wash away sandcastles shaped like a college campus.
The Review | Essay
Why Universities Are So Powerless in Their Fight Against Trump
By Jason Owen-Smith
Photo-based illustration of a closeup of a pencil meshed with a circuit bosrd
The Review | Essay
How Are Students Really Using AI?
By Derek O'Connell
John T. Scopes as he stood before the judges stand and was sentenced, July 2025.
The Review | Essay
100 Years Ago, the Scopes Monkey Trial Discovered Academic Freedom
By John K. Wilson

Upcoming Events

07-31-Turbulent-Workday_assets v2_Plain.png
Keeping Your Institution Moving Forward in Turbulent Times
Ascendium_Housing_Plain.png
What It Really Takes to Serve Students’ Basic Needs: Housing
Lead With Insight
  • Explore Content
    • Latest News
    • Newsletters
    • Letters
    • Free Reports and Guides
    • Professional Development
    • Events
    • Chronicle Store
    • Chronicle Intelligence
    • Jobs in Higher Education
    • Post a Job
  • Know The Chronicle
    • About Us
    • Vision, Mission, Values
    • DEI at The Chronicle
    • Write for Us
    • Work at The Chronicle
    • Our Reporting Process
    • Advertise With Us
    • Brand Studio
    • Accessibility Statement
  • Account and Access
    • Manage Your Account
    • Manage Newsletters
    • Individual Subscriptions
    • Group and Institutional Access
    • Subscription & Account FAQ
  • Get Support
    • Contact Us
    • Reprints & Permissions
    • User Agreement
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
    • California Privacy Policy
    • Do Not Sell My Personal Information
1255 23rd Street, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20037
© 2025 The Chronicle of Higher Education
The Chronicle of Higher Education is academe’s most trusted resource for independent journalism, career development, and forward-looking intelligence. Our readers lead, teach, learn, and innovate with insights from The Chronicle.
Follow Us
  • twitter
  • instagram
  • youtube
  • facebook
  • linkedin