Baltimore Collegetown 2023 Annual Report

Baltimore Collegetown Network

2023 ANNUAL REPORT

LETTER FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR March 2024

This year began with transition and change for Baltimore Collegetown. Thank you to former executive director Kirsten Brinlee, who departed Collegetown in February 2023 after eight years. Her creative vision and passion for the organization and Baltimore left a lasting legacy for us all.

2023 was also a time of growth and new ideas for Collegetown, and we are excited to share that with you in this annual report. While our core programs remained the same, we ventured into new areas this past year. We launched a new website, completed a research study on the retention of students and alumni in the region, and helped to host the 2023 NACAC Conference in Baltimore, to name a few.

Driving all of our initiatives, whether old or new, is our mission: to attract, engage, and retain students in the Greater Baltimore region. We know that Baltimore is a great college town. In collaboration with our member institutions, we are committed to shaping a future where students, colleges and universities, and Baltimore thrive.

Thank you for your continued support, and please reach out to me anytime.

In partnership,

Toni St. John Executive Director

ATTRACT Marketing In January, we debuted the 2023 Baltimore Look Book. The print and digital edition features thirteen student profiles, which let you follow a day in the lives of college students, each showing their unique Baltimore. This investment in creative storytelling promotes the best of Baltimore and its students. The 2023 Look Book campaign received 4.3 million impressions total between our website and our social media, and reached 274k unique accounts across social media. We received 82k YouTube views for the video campaign.

In June, Collegetown launched its new website. The website features individual pages for each college and university member and sections dedicated to counselors, parents, and employers. Highlights are the Baltimore Look Book page and a unique lead generation for each college and university. Since its launch, the website has received 93k unique visitors, and 183k sessions. The new website has generated increased traffic and visits, and we are excited to see how it grows and evolves.

NACAC Attracting college students to our campuses fuels the economic engine for Greater Baltimore and is at the core of our mission. In September, the National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC) conference came to Baltimore. Collegetown hosted an exhibit booth and reception, enabling its member institutions to connect with over 760 college counseling professionals. Thank you to our sponsors, including the Maryland Transit Administration and Maryland Independent College and University Association (MICUA) member schools. Through email marketing blasts, Collegetown reached thousands of conference attendees from across the globe with the message that Baltimore is a great college town.

The Collegetown and Gown Tour will resume in Fall 2024, welcoming college counselors from across the nation and world. The variety of participating schools offers counselors an insight into the incredible diversity of the region and the higher education options it has to offer. Since its launch in 2017, the Tour has welcomed 658 counselors from 37 states, the British Virgin Islands, England, Guatemala, Hong Kong, Nepal, Puerto Rico, Switzerland, and Thailand. Tour participants have inspired thousands of applications and enrollments, resulting in over $251 million in Gross Financial Impact, thus proving how valuable and critical of a program the Tour is to our region.

ENGAGE Collegetown Underground

Baltimore Collegetown welcomed students in January 2023 to Collegetown Underground, an opportunity to dive deep into Baltimore through an immersive, four-day experience. This year’s program theme was “Food,” focusing on the history and cultural impact in the Baltimore region. After taking a year off in 2022, Collegetown was excited to bring back this program.

STUDENT PERSPECTIVE “All I have left to say is thank you. I came to this program not knowing what to expect and was left with more knowledge than I’ve ever learned in school. I appreciate that we took the time to digest the city of Baltimore and all its goods. I came here from Cameroon when I was little and never felt at home until I participated in this program.”

MORE TO DISCOVER 20 students 7 colleges and universities 12 community partners

Student Governance Summit In February, Collegetown welcomed student leaders and advisers to the fifth annual Student Governance Summit, an opportunity for students to collaborate with peers from across the network. Held at Towson University, they networked and attended sessions on topics such as taking initiative as a student leader and how to run an effective meeting.

MORE TO DISCOVER STUDENT PERSPECTIVE “My biggest takeaway was the invaluable connections and friendships I made with SGA members from other universities.”

84 student leaders 11 colleges and universities Coppin State University, Goucher College, Johns Hopkins University, Loyola University Maryland, Maryland Institute College of Art, Morgan State University, Notre Dame of Maryland University, Stevenson University, Towson University, University of Baltimore, UMBC

3 breakout sessions, 5 roundtable discussions

RETAIN Student & Alumni Retention In May, Collegetown released research concerning student and alumni retention in Baltimore: “Strengthening Baltimore’s Knowledge-Based Community: An Exploration of Factors that Influence Retention Efforts of College Graduates in the Baltimore Region.” In an era of population decline for Baltimore, Collegetown’s efforts to retain talent is an important contributor to regional growth. The research indicates that the majority of current college seniors plan to, and recent alumni do, remain in Baltimore after they graduate from member institutions. Factors such as employment opportunities, job salaries, and cost of living are important in their decision-making. Results also showed that local internships and community engagement contribute to higher rates of student and alumni retention. Thank you to the Vanderbilt University research team, Hayley F. Benedict, Rita M. Lopez, and Tiffany T. Sanchez, the Maryland Higher Education Commission, and Collegetown’s Governing Board and member institutions for their assistance.

Industry Day

MORE TO DISCOVER 64% of students interested in remaining in Baltimore 67% of alumni remained in Baltimore 67% of alumni rate Baltimore as a highly desirable place to live 54% of students rated Baltimore as a highly desirable place to work 73% of alumni found jobs aligned with their degree

Launched in 2019, Industry Days connect employers to talent and students to careers in thriving industries across Baltimore. Thanks to support from sponsors like the Maryland Technology Internship Program, these events continue to drive student and alumni retention in the region. In April 2023, professionals from across six industries (Arts & Creative, Finance, Life Sciences & STEM, Mass Communication, Startups & Entrepreneurship, and Sustainability & Energy) networked and shared their career paths with students in an engaging event.

COLLABORATE Leaders In Higher Education In April, Collegetown hosted its second annual Leaders in Higher Education reception, honoring Greater Baltimore’s college presidents, elected officials, and collaborative champions. Strengthening relationships among higher education and civic leaders creates the conditions for collaboration needed to advance Baltimore’s future.

Communities of Practice

In 2023, Collegetown convened over 40 meetings among Communities of Practice, connecting hundreds of university employees across the network. Communities include: B’CaUSE (Sustainability) Case Managers Conduct Officers Baltimore County Health Department Human Resources MarComm and Admissions Student Activities Student Affairs Shuttle and Transportation

LEADERSHIP

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

STAFF Dr. Yvette Mozie-Ross, President UMBC

Gregory FitzGerald, Vice President Notre Dame of Maryland University

Dr. Stephan Moore, Secretary Coppin State University

Molly Hayeslip Program Director

Tara Howell Stephanie Coldren, Treasurer Loyola University Maryland

Antionette J. Marbray, Esq., At-Large Stevenson University

Communications Manager

Dr. Vernon Hurte, At-Large Towson University

COLLEGE MEMBERS Sonyae Williams Project Coordinator

Dr. Nicole Baird CCBC

Dr. Justin R. Smith Goucher College

Dr. Rachelle Hernandez Johns Hopkins University

Photography: Jim Burger, Dave Cooper, Molly Hayeslip, Tara Howell, Jared Lyles, and Tiffany Thompson.

Design & Copy: Tara Howell, and Toni St. John

Dr. Martin Lemelle

Maryland Institute College of Art

Dr. Letitia Williams

Morgan State University

Nicole Marano

Dr. Jenny Owens

Karina Mandell

Kelly Nagle

University of Baltimore

University of Maryland, Baltimore

AFFILIATE MEMBERS

Elizabeth Koontz Baltimore City

Samantha O’Neil

Baltimore County

Baltimore Development Corporation

Maryland Transit Administration

The 2023 Annual Report summarizes the successes of Baltimore Collegetown and its member organizations. The network brings together 13 colleges and universities, plus government entities and businesses, to attract, engage, and retain students to Greater Baltimore.

CONNECT WITH US TODAY! Baltimore Collegetown Network P.O. Box 11049 Baltimore, MD 21212 410.532.3035 info@baltimorecollegetown.org baltimorecollegetown.org