Westminster Catawba Christian School

In October 2019, Dr. Rick Newberry began working with the team at Westminster Catawba Christian School in Rock Hill, SC, to turnaround the enrollment decline. Rick has worked directly with Scott Dillon, Head of School, Jane Wilson, Director of Admissions, and Jennifer Polston, Communications Coordinator (Pictured in front of the school sign).

The WCCS team has been a model example of how they can work together and implement new strategies. They have been stretched to implement many new initiatives and have always responded positively. This team has risen to the occasion and their school’s growth is a result of their hard work, dedication and initiative.

Learn more about this partnership through Rick’s Enrollment Catalyst Program and the 9% enrollment growth and turnaround at WCCS as we continue to partner together (this is year three!).

Describe your school’s enrollment and marketing situation before you hired Rick Newberry and Enrollment Catalyst:

Before hiring Rick Newberry, our school enrollment had been on a steady decline for several years. Our Admissions and Marketing team consisted of only two staff members. With limited budget, resources, and staffing, we knew we needed to develop a proven strategy, and needed the best guidance possible in knowing the areas in which to prioritize.

Why did you decide to partner with Rick Newberry and Enrollment Catalyst?

We actually followed Rick Newberry’s blogs for about 5 years before hiring him on as a consultant at our school. We felt like we had learned a lot already from him regarding word-of-mouth marketing, Variable Tuition, etc., and felt like he would be a good fit given his previous experience with so many other Christian schools across the nation and the challenges that many are facing. We were extremely excited to bring him on and knew that he would have the wisdom and expertise to guide us in the areas we were struggling. Rick has helped us turn all the “good ideas” we were hearing about in the school marketing world into a proven, effective plan tailored to our own school community.

What were the results of working with Enrollment Catalyst? What were your greatest achievements?

Our enrollment has grown overall by 9% since starting work with Rick in 2019; inquiries have grown by 112%; visits are up 200% and retention is up by 10%.

What did you like best about working with Rick Newberry?

We have been working with Rick for over two years now. He gives practical tips and strategies for each area that he believes could use improvement. He also provides a network of schools and individuals who have “walked the road before us” that are always more than willing to share advice and strategies that have worked for them. We have been so grateful for his continued guidance, encouragement, and support!

Describe specific programs from the Enrollment Catalyst Program that generated the biggest impact for your marketing and enrollment efforts:

FANS program, word of mouth, storytelling/social media and other internal marketing strategies. We also use Rick’s School Survey Solutions to conduct our key surveys throughout the year.

What would you say to another school leader to recommend Rick Newberry to help them in their enrollment and marketing effort?

Hiring Rick Newberry has been one of our greatest, if not THE greatest investment that we have made in improving our enrollment and marketing efforts. He makes himself readily available all throughout the process, giving specific advice whenever needed. He continually pushes us to think outside of the box and try new strategies and to plan, develop, and monitor our strategies to achieve our enrollment and marketing goals.

For more information on the Enrollment Catalyst Program, please reach out to Rick at Rick.Newberry@EnrollmentCatalyst.com or view the Enrollment Catalyst website.