The Recovery Plan

PEC believes it isn't logical to ask the R-MWC trustees to reverse their coed decision and have the school return to business as usual without providing the school with a new business plan that will support it through the long term. R-MWC obviously wasn't operating well under the existing business plan or the College wouldn't be having a "crisis." Therefore, PEC is developing a recovery plan that includes financial incentives from alumnae, a business plan, and an offer of low-cost and pro bono assistance from experts.

Components of the Recovery Plan

Alumnae Support

In a survey that polled 18% of alumnae, 80% would increase their current donations if R-MWC remained a women's college. Of those alumnae polled, 78% donated to the school in the past 24 months, so it is safe to say that with PEC's help, R-MWC can increase alumnae giving substantially to raise the additional funds needed to cover a large portion of current operating losses.

In years past, the alumnae were one of the strongest recruiting tools for R-MWC. Recently, alumnae haven't been contacted or organized to effectively recruit students. PEC will work with the Alumnae Association and the school to develop a more effective plan to utilize alumnae to recruit and retain students.

When the Alumnae Office began cutting back on chapter support over the past years and the school stopped sending administrators to visit alumnae, alumnae chapter activity across the U.S. dwindled, leading many chapters to close. PEC and the Alumnae Association will work with R-MWC to revitalize the alumnae community and enlist the strength of alumnae to support the school in many ways. Without a vital alumnae community, the school can't expect to survive.

A Business Plan

Given that admissions, retention, tuition discounting and campus life were the major problem areas that caused trustees to require a new business strategy, the business plan will focus primarily on these areas. Below is an overview of the business plan components.

• Market Research and Targeting Strategy
• Branding Strategy
• Recruiting Strategy
• Communications and Messaging Strategy
• Tuition Negotiation Strategy
• Admissions Process Strategy
• Campus Life Strategy
• Operations Optimization Strategy
• Organizational Realignment Strategy
• Alumnae Relations Strategy
• Development Strategy
• Transition Strategy

Implementation Assistance

PEC can't expect R-MWC to implement a new business plan without assistance. Therefore, PEC will recruit a team of experts to assist R-MWC implement a new business plan. These experts will be asked to work at low-cost or on a pro bono basis to minimize expenses. Many of the experts will be alumnae, but others will also be recruited by alumnae and in some cases paid by alumnae.