Outlook - August 2004

Seamless service is goal for new vice president

by Lauren Schwarz

Rob Weaver rejoined the Union staff on April 12 as vice president for enrollment and student financial services. Weaver will head the newly merged department, which combines recruiting, admissions and student financial services to create a seamless link from recruitment and application through enrollment and financial aid. This streamlining is a work in progress and will result in a simpler enrollment process.
        Fostering a smooth integration of all components of the newly joined department is Weaver’s main objective. To help aid the process, Weaver recently led his team in developing a mission statement, vision and specific goals for the department.
        The merger within the department has created a new dynamic, a fresh start that Weaver and his team plan to use to strengthen their services. This directed approach, including the implementation of a more complete and directed tracking system, will help enrollment staff zero in on the most effective communication and recruitment strategies, and offer more personalized services to prospective and current students.
        A personal goal for Weaver is to find better ways to meet the needs of Adventist students in public high schools, home schools and local community colleges. “There are many of those students out there, and we haven’t connected with them like I think we can,” Weaver said. “We want to help them understand the value of Union and what we can offer.”
        Weaver is proud of the link between the college and the Mid-America Union and hopes to increase the number of services attractive to constituents. “People in the Mid-America Union call Union ‘our school,’” Weaver said. “There is great loyalty to Union College in this union. We want to continue to build on this strength.”
        Weaver, who holds an MBA from the University of Arkansas, taught marketing and management courses at Union from 1994 through 1998. He returned to Union after working for a direct marketing firm in Dallas and spending two years in a self-employment venture. “I came back because I loved teaching here,” Weaver said. “I am excited by the opportunities I see open to the college.”
        Buell Fogg, former vice president for enrollment services, has accepted a position as assistant to the president. Under his new title, Fogg will assist President David Smith by representing Union in a broader role. Fogg, who has served Union for 14 years, will still promote the college in various capacities, including recruiting at academies, presenting weeks of prayer and speaking at churches and events.