For school board members
Use defined funnel stages and grade-level capacity to understand admissions performance. Ask leadership to explain the material obstacle, proposed response, and evidence for review. Avoid treating a marketing activity count as a result or directing individual admissions decisions from the board table.
This month’s action: Request one enrollment decision supported by current funnel evidence.
Map the path a family actually follows
An admissions process may look straightforward to employees and confusing to a new family. Begin with first awareness and follow the path through inquiry, visit, application, decision, and enrollment. Identify what the family needs to know at each stage, whom it can contact, and where the school asks it to repeat information.
Review a recent cycle using actual records. Count inquiries, visits, applications, and enrollments with consistent definitions. Separate a qualified inquiry from an unrelated message and an accepted offer from completed enrollment. Missing dates and incomplete records should be visible rather than quietly treated as successful follow-up.
Make the next step easy to understand
Give each inquiry a named owner and a clear next action. Agree internally on a response standard the school can meet, then check actual performance. A useful first reply answers the family’s question and offers an appropriate next step; it does not overwhelm the family with every brochure and form at once.
A campus visit should help a family understand the school’s mission and daily experience. Ask about its priorities, show the relevant program, and make room for questions. Afterward, summarize what comes next and any information still needed. Follow-up should remain helpful and respectful, with no invented urgency or promises the school cannot keep.
Find the point worth improving
Look for the stage where families repeatedly stop or wait. A low visit count may reflect scheduling friction, unclear expectations, poor fit, or incomplete tracking. Ask families and admissions staff before choosing a remedy. Compare patterns by grade where usable capacity and program needs differ.
Choose one improvement for the next cycle and assign a review date. Track whether response time, visit scheduling, or application completion changed. Enrollment remains a mutual decision about mission, educational fit, and the school’s ability to serve the student well; conversion figures should inform that decision rather than replace it.
School boards: monthly action worksheet
Use this template in your next leadership meeting. Add your school’s evidence, responsible person, and review date. The page can be printed or saved as a PDF using your browser.
| Step | Work to record | Responsible person / next date |
|---|---|---|
| Your role | Use defined funnel stages and grade-level capacity to understand admissions performance. Ask leadership to explain the material obstacle, proposed response, and evidence for review. Avoid treating a marketing activity count as a result or directing individual admissions decisions from the board table. | Clarify responsibility |
| This month’s action | Request one enrollment decision supported by current funnel evidence. | Choose a date |
| Evidence to review | What is the strongest evidence for the improvement leadership proposes? | Record what is known and missing |
| Next conversation | Bring the evidence and any decision beyond your role to the appropriate person. | Arrange follow-up |
One question to put into practice
What is the strongest evidence for the improvement leadership proposes?
Continue in Solomon
An original Arete briefing adapted from the linked field notes. Guidance must be interpreted in the school’s context by its responsible leaders and qualified advisors.
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