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Utah Valley University

myFootpath Launches Reengagement Campaign with Utah Valley University

24 Jul

Chicago, Illinois – July 24, 2025 – myFootpath, a trusted higher education service provider with more than 25 years of experience, is proud to announce a new collaboration with Utah Valley University (UVU), a public institution based in Orem, Utah. United by a shared mission to transform lives, the focus will be on reengaging and graduating nontraditional students who paused their academic journeys before completing a degree. 

Through this collaboration, myFootpath will provide UVU with its signature combination of student data analysis, innovative technology solutions, and personalized, one-on-one coaching. These tools are designed to support adult learners from their first point of reengagement all the way through to graduation. 

Today’s announcement comes amid growing urgency across higher education to better serve the 43 million Americans who have “some college, no credential” (SCNC), according to the latest data from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center. “At myFootpath, we believe every student deserves a clear and supported pathway back to degree completion, no matter the barriers they’ve faced,” said JT Allen, Founder and CEO of myFootpath. “Utah Valley University shares this deep commitment to student success, and we’re thrilled to join forces in delivering strategic outreach, individualized support, and data-driven results to help these learners return, persist, and graduate.” 

myFootpath has partnered with institutions nationwide since 2000, helping them identify, guide, and support adult learners through a proven, re-enrollment model. Grounded in values of resourcefulness, transparency, and authenticity, myFootpath consistently drives meaningful outcomes for both students and institutional partners. 

This collaboration also aligns closely with UVU’s Adult Learner Initiative, a university-wide effort launched in 2022. The initiative offers adult learners accelerated credit for prior learning, specialized academic advising, and wraparound support services tailored to their needs. 

“At UVU, we recognize that adult learners bring unique experiences, goals, and challenges to their academic journey,” said Wade Oliver, Senior Director of Adult Learner Support Initiatives. “By offering customized services in partnership with myFootpath, we’re creating a strong foundation to help these students return with confidence, persist through obstacles, and ultimately earn their degree.” 

About myFootpath
myFootpath provides marketing, enrollment, and retention services to college and university clients. With a focus on and a passion for adult students looking to complete their degrees, myFootpath has tackled every aspect of the student enrollment funnel.  By prioritizing rigorous data analysis, myFootpath extracts invaluable insights to guide the allocation of effort within institutions. This strategic approach ensures targeted and impactful interventions, maximizing enrollment outcomes, and bolstering overall student success. To date, myFootpath has collectively reached, encouraged, and helped enroll over 30,000 adult students in partnership with higher education clients. 

About Utah Valley University 
Utah Valley University believes that everyone deserves the transforming benefits of a high-quality education — one that is affordable, accessible, and flexible. With opportunities to earn everything from certificates to master’s degrees, UVU helps students succeed by providing real-world experience and developing career-ready skills. The university continues to invite people to come as they are — and leave ready and prepared to make a difference in the world. 

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Categories: News & Research, Universities
UPCEA Session

Transforming Education for Adult Learners

16 Jul

Student success is a guiding principle across institutions and should serve as the north star for how they design their experience. Today, there are over 43 million adults who have started at an institution of higher education and left prior to earning a degree. In fact, the average graduation rate at 4-year institutions is just over 60%, where it has languished for decades. There are a bevvy of retention efforts at institutions all over the country, most not having moved the needle as indicated by the national average graduation rate. While those efforts remain critically important, we have an ethical obligation to reengage with those who have left our institutions before graduating.  

Addressing adult students as a distinct market segment, rather than grouping them with traditional students, allows us to better meet their specific needs and build on their unique experiences. This approach needs to address issues which may be confronting them and could be hampering their ability to return to school. These include learning modalities, course scheduling, convenience in accessing coursework and a strong support system. It also needs to provide a clear and well-oiled entry-point to the institution as well as an academic pathway enabling them to advance in or even enter the workforce.   

Online learning serves as a platform that enables greater flexibility in one’s schedule and can bring together students from broader geographic backgrounds. Many industries introduced more robust virtual services during the pandemic so a much more vast number of the populace are used to interacting in such a manner. Universities can provide robust student support through virtual means now to help students persist and graduate.  

The session will examine how well-designed online programs and virtual support services can drive engagement and accommodate adult learners' diverse needs. 

In this discussion, we will explore the nuances of the adult student population and share practical strategies to enhance their retention, strengthen their engagement, and ultimately help them achieve their academic and professional goals. 

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Categories: News & Research, Universities

Empowering Texas Students: The Impact of myFootpath’s New Partnerships

11 Mar

Chicago, Illinois – 3/11/2025 - myFootpath, a leading higher education service provider for over 20 years, has announced new partnerships with The University of Texas at Tyler, a public university located in Tyler, Texas and Sam Houston State University, a public university located in Huntsville, Texas. This collaboration aims to tackle the increasing demand for support among nontraditional students in Texas, especially those who have encountered obstacles on their journey to earning a degree.  myFootpath will offer comprehensive analysis of former student data, cutting-edge technology solutions, and personalized coaching for students, all designed to help a greater number of Texans resume education, maintain their studies, and ultimately complete college degrees.  

Each university partnership highlights the significant demand for better solutions to reduce the number of stop-out students, a challenge that is being felt state and nationwide. According to the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center, the some college experience but, no credential (SCNC) population has reached 40.4 million within the United States. "At myFootpath, our mission is to provide every student with the resources they need to finish their degree. The University of Texas at Tyler and Sam Houston State University are ideal partners in this mission, as they share our passion for supporting students in their educational journey,” said JT Allen, Founder and CEO of myFootpath. “Through each partnership, we aim to equip Texas students with the tools and guidance they need to overcome barriers to return and complete college degrees." 

Since 2000, myFootpath has been supporting institutions by developing a unique, comprehensive approach to identify, coach, and guide adult students from first reengagement contact through graduation. myFootpath company core values of being resourceful, transparent, and authentic to not only their partners but their students is core to their successful track record.  

"As an institution, The University of Texas at Tyler has always been committed to meeting the evolving needs of our students and the state of Texas. Partnering with myFootpath allows us to enhance our ability to support adult learners who have faced challenges along their academic path, get them back on track, and help them graduate,” said David Barron, Vice President for Enrollment Management, University of Texas at Tyler.  

We are in unprecedented times, with more and more students shifting to online, while institutions face the looming enrollment cliff. This presents a monumental opportunity to rethink how we attract, support, and retain students. Together with our own institutional expertise, and myFootpath’s proven strategies, we are excited to help more Texans return to school, persist, and graduate,” said Dr. Bill Angrove, Associate Vice President and Chief Online Education Officer, Sam Houston State University. 

About myFootpath

myFootpath provides marketing, enrollment, and retention services to college and university clients. With a focus on and a passion for adult students looking to complete their degrees, myFootpath has tackled every aspect of the student enrollment funnel.  By prioritizing rigorous data analysis, myFootpath extracts invaluable insights to guide the allocation of effort within institutions. This strategic approach ensures targeted and impactful interventions, maximizing enrollment outcomes, and bolstering overall student success. To date, myFootpath has collectively reached, encouraged, and helped enroll over 28,000 adult students in partnership with higher education clients. 

About The University of Texas at Tyler 

The University of Texas at Tyler (UT Tyler), established in 1971, is a public research university located in Tyler, Texas. As a member of The University of Texas System, UT Tyler offers a comprehensive range of undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral programs across various disciplines. The university is dedicated to fostering student success through innovative scholarship and research, aiming to serve and advance the educational, economic, technological, and public interests of East Texas and beyond. 

About Sam Houston State University 

Sam Houston State University (SHSU), established in 1879, is a public research university located in Huntsville, Texas. As the third-oldest public institution in Texas, SHSU offers a diverse range of undergraduate, master's, and doctoral programs across various disciplines. The university is committed to providing quality education, fostering research, and serving the community. With a student enrollment exceeding 20,000, SHSU is recognized for its strong academic programs and vibrant campus life. 

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Categories: News & Research, Uncategorized, Universities

myFootpath Partners with Regis University

18 Feb

Chicago, Illinois – 2/18/2025 - myFootpath, a leading higher education service provider for over 20+ years, has announced a new partnership with Regis University, a private Jesuit Catholic university located in Denver, Colorado and founded in 1877. This partnership shares a common mission to transform lives by reengaging and graduating nontraditional students who may have stumbled along the path to degree completion. In this partnership, myFootpath will bring in-depth student data analysis, innovative technology solutions and dedicated one-on-one student coaching to Regis University. 

Today’s announcement underscores the significant demand of institutions looking for better solutions to reduce the number of stop-out students. According to the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center, some college, no credential (SCNC) population has reached 40.4 million, up 1.4 million from 39.0 million in the previous year. "At myFootpath, we believe every student deserves the opportunity to complete their degree, no matter the obstacles they’ve faced,” said JT Allen, CEO & Founder of myFootpath. “Regis University shares this commitment to student success, and we are excited to partner with them to provide the data-driven insights, personalized coaching, and strategic enrollment and student success support needed to help students return, persist, and graduate." 

Since 2000, myFootpath has been supporting institutions by developing a unique, comprehensive approach on identifying, coaching, and guiding adult students from first reengagement contact through graduation. myFootpath company core values of being resourceful, transparent, and authentic to not only their partners but their students are core to their successful track record.  

"Regis University has a long history of supporting adult learners, and this partnership with myFootpath strengthens our ability to reengage students who have paused their education,” said Provost, Jake Bucher, Ph.D,  “By combining myFootpath’s proven reengagement strategies with our dedication to student success, we look forward to welcoming back our previous students and helping them achieve their academic and career goals." 

About myFootpath 

myFootpath provides marketing, enrollment, and retention services to college and university clients. With a focus on and a passion for adult students looking to complete their degrees, myFootpath has tackled every aspect of the student enrollment funnel.  By prioritizing rigorous data analysis, myFootpath extracts invaluable insights to guide the allocation of effort within institutions. This strategic approach ensures targeted and impactful interventions, maximizing enrollment outcomes, and bolstering overall student success. To date, myFootpath has collectively reached, encouraged, and helped enroll over 28,000 adult students in partnership with higher education clients. 

About Regis University 

Established in 1877, Regis University is a premier, globally engaged institution of higher learning in the Jesuit tradition that prepares leaders to live productive lives of faith, meaning and service. Regis University, one of 27 Jesuit universities in the nation, has two campus locations in the Denver metro area and extensive online program offerings with more than 6,000 enrolled students. It is a federally designated Hispanic-Serving Institution. For more information, visit www.regis.edu. 

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Categories: News & Research, Universities

myFootpath Partners with Felician University

04 Feb

Chicago, Illinois – 2/5/2025 - myFootpath, a leading higher education service provider for over 20+ years, has announced a new partnership with Felician University, a private university located in Rutherford, New Jersey. This partnership shares a common mission to transform lives by reengaging and graduating nontraditional students who may have stumbled along the path to degree completion. In this partnership, myFootpath will bring in-depth student data analysis, innovative technology solutions and dedicated one-on-one coaching to Felician University. 

Today’s announcement underscores the significant demand of institutions looking for better solutions to reduce the number of stop-out students. According to the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center, some college, no credential (SCNC) population has reached 40.4 million, up 1.4 million from 39.0 million in the previous year.  “We have seen an unprecedented demand for myFootpath’s flexible reengagement service model over the past few years,” said JT Allen, CEO & Founder of myFootpath. “The adult learner population requires a certain level of concierge support that many institutions need additional resources and provisions to enable. We have come up with affordable solutions for institutions that not only help bring students back but also lower overall student acquisitions costs.” 

Since 2000, myFootpath has been supporting institutions by developing a unique, comprehensive approach on identifying, coaching, and guiding adult students from first reengagement contact through graduation. myFootpath company core values of being resourceful, transparent, and authentic to not only their partners but their students is core to their successful track record.  

 “We are excited about our new partnership with myFootpath to reengage adult learners and support their journey coming back to Felician University and graduating,” said Priscilla Klymenko, Vice President of Enrollment Management, Marketing, and Communications “We look forward to welcoming back students and providing additional resources and support that they deserve.” 

About myFootpath 

myFootpath provides marketing, enrollment, and retention services to college and university clients. With a focus on and a passion for adult students looking to complete their degrees, myFootpath has tackled every aspect of the student enrollment funnel.  By prioritizing rigorous data analysis, myFootpath extracts invaluable insights to guide the allocation of effort within institutions. This strategic approach ensures targeted and impactful interventions, maximizing enrollment outcomes, and bolstering overall student success. To date, myFootpath has collectively reached, encouraged, and helped enroll over 28,000 adult students in partnership with higher education clients. 

About Felician University 

Felician University, with campuses in Rutherford and Lodi, New Jersey, is a private catholic university that has a student body of over 2,100 undergraduate, graduate, and adult education students, and a wide range of programs through its Schools of Arts & Sciences, Business & Information Sciences, Nursing, and Education. 

Felician University's commitment to student success is reflected in its rankings and recognitions. For the past five years, the university has consistently ranked third among private institutions in New Jersey for best value, according to Payscale.com. Additionally, Niche.com has recognized Felician as the #1 Safest College Campus in New Jersey. The university’s Master of Science in Nursing program has been ranked among the nation’s best online graduate nursing programs by U.S. News & World Report. 

A strong advocate for military-affiliated students, Felician University has been designated a Military Friendly School (Gold Status) for the thirteenth consecutive year. The university is also recognized as a Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI) and Minority-Serving Institution (MSI), with more than half of its student population coming from underrepresented backgrounds. 

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Categories: News & Research, Universities

The Vital Role of Continuing and Online Education in Higher Ed

16 Jul

Presently, continuing and online learning has never been more crucial in higher education and professional settings. The demands of the current and future workforce, coupled with an increasingly digital economy, create a strong nexus with higher education. Additionally, declining state funding and significant enrollment drops due to demographic shifts, lingering Covid impacts, and growing skepticism of the value of a college degree highlight the urgent need for new revenue sources to ensure the viability of most colleges and universities– many of which lack robust endowments to help buffer these losses.

Opportunities for Engagement and Revenue

Despite these challenges, opportunities exist to engage and re-enroll adult learners and stopped-out students. Continuing and online education units are uniquely positioned to generate new enrollments and critical revenue streams. Their extensive outreach in the private sector and local communities plays a significant role in alumni engagement and institutional growth. As these units continue to gain importance, they are expected to achieve greater equality with other campus units, driving both enrollment and revenue.

Building Strong Relationships

To successfully navigate the pressures on traditional university and college enrollments, strong relationships between traditional enrollment departments and continuing education units are essential. Continuing education units have a long history of serving non-traditional learners who face barriers to full-time education, such as family obligations, work commitments, and financial constraints. Without a strong alliance with these units, enrollment departments risk further challenges. Proper collaboration can unlock opportunities for co-marketing programs, targeted recruiting events, and leveraging resources to attract new learners and reengage stopped-out students.

Adapting and Innovating

Continuing education units have consistently excelled, even with limited resources and suboptimal institutional support. Recent enrollment headwinds and state funding declines have, in many cases, bolstered continuing education units and forced university leadership to focus resources and tap into the entrepreneurial nature of these units. Moreover, the market has driven the continuing education space to develop and promote more unique and creative offerings to different audiences, and expand their reach through partnerships with local businesses, active duty military, veterans, and community organizations.

Leveraging Unique Strengths

These units are uniquely positioned to address the enrollment, access, and affordability challenges faced by higher education. This is an ideal time for colleges and universities to leverage continuing education units, breaking down silos and fostering collaboration across their campuses. Listening to the needs of diverse audiences, being nimble, market-driven, and maintaining a strong entrepreneurial culture are key to meeting the needs of non-traditional learners. These units can quickly develop, market, and manage non-credit certificates, trainings, and events, adapting to the evolving needs of their audiences.

Looking ahead

Moving forward, as demographic impacts reduce traditional undergraduate enrollments, institutions must adapt to reach more diverse and nontraditional student populations who cannot attend full-time in-person. University leadership will need to foster stronger collaborations, develop integrated and targeted marketing strategies, and provide flexible online learning modalities. Policies and resources must be refined to minimize duplicate functions and adjust business models to accommodate the shift towards nontraditional enrollments. Furthermore, the meteoric rise of artificial intelligence offers new opportunities for innovation, complementing current tools like chatbots and predictive analytics in student enrollment strategies. Although many headwinds exist, the future holds bright prospects for continuing and online education units, as they continue to play a vital role in shaping the future of higher education.


Written by: Michael Huffman, Ph.D.


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Categories: News & Research, Universities

It Takes New Enrollment Efforts To Get Results Today

07 May

It Takes New Enrollment Efforts To Get Results Today

Maybe there have been times as tumultuous as these, however, I do not remember them. We had real estate and economic crises a while ago. They negatively affected higher education enrollment, yet today’s publicly expressed anti-university sentiment seems new to me. It is true that some institutions cost more than a mortgage in a nice area, and that some do not see more than half of their incoming students graduate within six years. I am going to chalk that up to poor management.  However, with anecdotal evidence of having been an enrollment management leader for several decades, I will posit, based upon recent conversations, that most institutions really do care. And that many are trying really hard to find their north star. From what I have heard over the last year, there are a few challenges facing us – you’ll not be surprised.
  • We thought we’d be immune to the demographic cliff (we just need to work harder)
  • Our student success efforts have limited impact (we can’t afford to scale them)
  • The 6-year grad rates we have will go unnoticed (we have support systems in-place, it’s not us, it’s them)
OK, the truth is this – we are expensive, we are a huge opportunity cost and in many instances, we are irrelevant. 

Enrollment Challenges: An Urgent Call to Action

Let’s forget about the top-tier and flag-ships for a moment as they are not struggling as much as the rest of us today. We strive to offer something regionally or distinctively special, yet our traditional pool of candidates have so many options. 100+ academic majors, 200+ clubs, this and that, makes a lot of noise to prospects. At the end of the day the families ask the students -  will you get a good job, will you be safe and will you have a network?  We know that we must bring in a certain number of students and retain them to financially support the institution. Now, more potential students are choosing to forego higher education and there is about to be a significant shift in high school graduates. The answer is to begin recruiting those students whom we admitted yet who never finished. There are over 40 million adults with some college credit and no degree. There is no shortage of a pool here. There are enough potential readmits of our own stop-outs, who are already familiar with us and may retain an affinity. 

Supporting Non-Traditional Students

How did we get to a place where the average rate of completion is 60% and that is acceptable? Well, I think it is because there was no shortage of traditional new students to keep enrollment numbers at a prescribed level. Many of us do not have strong retention initiatives in place and have been expanding clubs and student activities in an effort to keep the students engaged and enrolled. Today, we need to focus upon our different types of students. Let’s look at our commuters and non-traditional students. They may prefer a quick convenient bite over an all you can eat dining plan. They may value parking near their classes over tickets to a game.  They may also desire to conduct transactions outside of traditional business hours and to be able to take classes in-person as well as remotely. It is important that we get to know how resilient our students are and to support those who most need it. 

A Collaborative Solution

 A few years ago I began serving as an advisor to myFootpath. My role was to provide feedback on a service designed to re-enroll stop-outs. I found great value in their work for a number of reasons. As an enrollment manager, my admissions teams were focused upon filling seats with freshmen and transfers. We did not have the luxury of increasing staff to meet future students while they were in ninth grade, nor to hunt down the many thousands of folk who left before graduating. Half of the current student contact information was bad and there was no way we would be able to clean-up contact data of those who had already left. Another reason was that a large fraction of those who left prior to graduating were from marginalized populations. If we believe education brings about equity, that means we need to improve both the access as well as the completion of studies. Finally, when institutions are able to recapture tuition revenue, those funds can be allocated in ways to best support students.

Celebrating Success: Over 27,000 Lives Changed and Counting

Today, I continue to serve as a senior advisor to myFootpath. We have incorporated additional measures to support students including a non-cognitive assessment that indicates who is more or less likely to persevere in the face of adversity, and returning to college can certainly be scary. Not only do we provide additional support to low-scoring students, but we also provide personal development workshops for them to be able to better manage areas where needed. Over 27,000 students have returned to their native institutions through myFootpath. That means over 27,000 lives have been changed for the better. It takes new enrollment efforts to get results today. Written by: Luke Schultheis, Ph.D.
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Categories: News & Research, Uncategorized, Universities
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