This month, we are interviewing Luke Schultheis, Ph.D., Vice Provost for Strategic Enrollment Management at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU). He has been an AACRAO member since 2002, and is currently serving as the Vice President for Admissions and Enrollment Management. We asked him about his experience in higher ed and as an AACRAO member, and found that his path towards leadership is anything but conventional.
How did you get started in higher education? Describe how you’ve ended up where you are now.
I was an executive in the hospitality industry in New York City for years and was drawn to educating inner city students to that field, so I transitioned into a faculty role at City University of New York (CUNY) teaching hospitality management. I became a department chair at
Monroe College before serving as a director of admissions and then returned to academics as the Founding Dean of the School of Hospitality Management and the Culinary Arts.
During this time, I got involved in the Middle States Association of Collegiate Registrars and Officers of Admissions (MSACROA), speaking on issues of access for low socioeconomic status urban youth and discovered I had been practicing enrollment management without knowing the term existed. Prior to arriving at VCU, I was the Associate Vice President for Enrollment Management and Student Services at the University of Nevada – Las Vegas (UNLV).
What is your most memorable professional accomplishment?
I've had an exciting career which included helping establish a branch campus on the island of Saint Lucia, and developing a hospitality school curriculum and training staff/faculty pro bono for a new, tuition-free hospitality school in Jacmel, Haiti.
Most recently I've enjoyed working with an amazing team at VCU – a 32,000 student, urban, very high research, community-engaged institution to increase access, retention and graduation rates. Our incoming freshmen have the highest high school GPA of any cohort, the largest class at 4,050 students, are over 50 percent non-white, 33 percent first generation. Nearly 30 percent of the undergraduate students receive the Pell grant. Our graduation rate has increased over 7 points to 62 percent in three years and we have bridged the student outcomes gap in many ways. In fact, our African American graduation rate is 64 percent this year. And our transfer population - about 2,100 each fall, graduates at a rate parallel to the freshmen!
Which AACRAO meeting has been the most memorable for you, and why?
All are special. I recall one – I don't remember if it was the annual meeting or SEM – but I was slated to introduce an important speaker near the beginning of the meeting. I had an ACL reconstruction two weeks prior and had to walk with crutches. I realized at 6am that I had forgotten to pack shirts. Let's just say that the solution was creative and no one knew the difference.
What advice would you give to AACRAO members about how to get involved in the leadership of AACRAO?
I first met an AACRAO board member at the MSACROA conference in Atlantic City years ago when I was a Dean. I presented on student access and our current AACRAO President Dan Garcia (then Vice President for Access and Equity) asked several questions. I enjoyed the dialogue and we exchanged business cards and kept in touch through the years. I never anticipated I would be serving on the Board of Directors with him years later. Strategic Enrollment Management Quarterly (SEM-Q) and non-cognitive variable efforts have provided me with the opportunity to engage Don Hossler and Bill Sedlacek and countless others-members who are experts. I've learned so much from those I have met at AACRAO. Don’t be afraid to reach out to other experts and leaders, and volunteer whatever time or expertise you are willing to give. People will notice.
What current Board initiative has you really excited right now?
I am particularly excited about the strategic planning process. The work to frame all efforts of the staff, board and other leadership groups within the strategic framework will help provide members with clear understanding of the value and resources of the organization. It will also continue to ensure that future initiatives are always aligned with that framework. This structuring will help us continue to build upon the great work completed to date over the last hundred years.