Joe Bagnoli in his office

Upon graduating with his degree in business administration, Bagnoli accepted an appointment as a Berea admissions counselor under former director John Cook. He has spent considerable time studying the college- going habits of students within the Appalachian region. Over the course of two appointments in the Berea admissions department and as director of admissions and financial aid at Concord College in W.Va., he traveled extensively in North Caro-lina, South Carolina, Georgia, Ohio, Kentucky, West Virginia, Tennessee and Virginia, before returning to Berea in 1997 as director of admis-sions. He is married to Lori (Zastrow) ’92; they have four children—Lilianna, Marina, Philip and Cecelia.
Berea College Magazine: How does Berea College differ from other colleges in the way it recruits students?

Joe Bagnoli: Like other colleges, Berea seeks to identify those students who are well matched to the character of our institution. At many other places, however, the pressure for high enrollment levels leaves other admissions counselors describing a well matched student as anyone who meets minimum entrance requirements and who can pay the bill. We have the good fortune (and a subsequent obligation) to look much deeper into the qualities of our applicants. We try to interview every student to better understand their predisposition toward the liberal arts and their level of compatibility with the uniqueness of Berea’s academic, labor and co-curricular programs as well as our inclusive Christian traditions.

In addition, it is the case that approximately one-half of the high school seniors in our primary service region do not meet the financial need requirements for admission to Berea. Therefore, we begin our search for a new class every year with roughly one-half as many viable prospects compared to nearly all other institutions. While many colleges begin screening their inquiry pools on the basis of ability to pay tuition costs, our charge requires us to sort these individuals out of our pool.

BCM: A July 30, 2001 article in U.S. News & World Report, entitled “Are Boys the Weaker Sex?” suggests that by 2007, colleges and universities are projected to enroll 6.9 million men compared with 9.2 million women. What challenges does Berea face in recruiting male students? What measures is Berea taking to maintain a favorable male:female ratio in the face of such a trend?

JB: Not unlike most regional and national liberal arts colleges, Berea encounters more of a challenge identifying qualified male candidates for admission than their female counterparts. Our experience is that there are simply more females in the top one-fifth of their high school graduating class than there are males. Berea is not alone in the challenge to identify well-prepared male students for admission.
To address this national, regional and local trend, especially in the Appalachian region, we have paid careful attention to our recruitment literature to insure that it has masculine appeal. We have increased our stream of communication to well qualified males and have recently developed an athletics brochure outlining the strong sports traditions that coexist with Berea’s academic programs. We have also introduced three annual open house events at Berea over the last few years in an effort to encourage more students (males in particular) to seriously consider making application to Berea. We have found that we have a much better chance of appealing to students who have the opportunity to visit campus.

BCM: To what do you attribute this national decline in male college enrollments?

JB: The economy plays a significant role in the decisions young men make about college attendance. Last year the College Board released a series of demographic indicators that predict a continued decline in male college-going rates across the country over the next ten years. In general, males in high school behave as though they are not as motivated to attend college right away. One illustration of this is that our female pool of applicants is a far more eager group, completing the application process earlier in the year than men.

BCM: What is Berea’s goal for enrollment to remain coeducationally balanced?

JB: I believe coeducation depends upon coexistence. In as much as interracial education is enhanced by experiences with those of other racial and cultural backgrounds, the goals of coeducation—developing a sensitivity, respect, and appreciation toward the opposite sex—are more easily met when ample opportunities for interaction exist. Ideally, we would enroll an even distribution of males and females at Berea. Currently, we are closer to that aim than most similar institutions with a 44:56 male to female ratio.

BCM: You’ve just taken on your new role as associate provost in academic services. What do you see as the top three or four challenges in your new role? What are some of your goals?

JB: I am immediately struck by the opportunity to help integrate the work of four important student service areas. It is exciting to think of developing a new online web community for internal and external users. We have only begun to scratch the surface of possibilities that exist through the use of the College’s website. In addition, I look forward to continuing the good work of my former colleague, Philip Schmidt, as Berea strives to develop a new Student Service Center that will incorporate student academic services, financial aid, and student accounts into the newly renovated space in Lincoln Hall beginning in the summer of 2003.

There are many dedicated people in each of the areas in which I’ve been assigned to work, and my goal is to bring them together in meaningful ways. I hope to help us maintain the diversity and well-preparedness of entering students at Berea that we have enjoyed over the last five years, as well as provide leadership for improved services aimed at student success.