Engaging Community Colleges in Outreach and Enrollment

© 2013 Enroll America | EnrollAmerica.org

Engaging Community Colleges in Outreach and Enrollment

Wednesday February 26, 2014

© 2013 Enroll America | EnrollAmerica.org 2

Moderator: Rachael Klarman, National Youth Engagement Director, Enroll America Presenters: Amy Lin, National Organizing Director, Young Invincibles Meghan Blickman, Pennsylvania Organizing Director, Enroll America

SPEAKERS


AGENDA

I.  Capitalizing on Your Strengths

II.  Why Target Community Colleges? III. How to Engage Community Colleges

III.  Tips on Monitoring & Evaluation

IV.  Q&A


I. Capitalizing on Your Strengths

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What Has Worked Well So Far?

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•  33 days until the end of open enrollment

•  This is the time to: ü  Focus on what you do WELL ü  Build on what you have done so far ü  Leverage relationships with your network ü  NOT the time to invest a lot of resources in doing something totally new

IDENTIFY what has worked

Make plans to REPEAT these

strategies

But AMPLIFY for the next five weeks


II. Why Target Community Colleges

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Why Target Community Colleges?

•  Demographic make-up of community college •  Few offer student health plans •  Community colleges are every where

•  Since they are present in most communities that makes them a great way to conduct outreach in rural communities


•  Four-year colleges often require students to show proof of adequate insurance.

•  Students are more likely to be covered through their parents insurance.

Why Not Four-Year Colleges?


Community Colleges have a compelling interest in helping their students get covered. •  A recent study on college completion suggests that

having health insurance would help students complete their degrees.

•  Many community colleges already make an effort to connect students to programs such as STAMP or TANF benefits.

What’s In It For Community Colleges?


•  There are 6 campuses in Northern VA •  To set up events, Young Invincibles Navigators

contacted the school’s: •  Administration – Dean and Director of student

activities and services •  Faculty of relevant classes (social sciences, health) •  Student life coordinators

•  We have conducted outreach, education, tabling, and enrollment at every campus and the surrounding area

Northern Virginia Community College (NOVA)


•  Table set up most of the day at a regular time every week in a busy location

•  Hand out educational materials and information to

anyone walking by •  DC In-person assisters are there to enroll students

immediately

University of DC Community College (UDC CC)


II. How to Engage Community Colleges


•  Northampton Community College •  Partnership with Benefits Access Program •  School identifies uninsured students •  Tabling and information Sessions

•  Allegheny Community College •  Partnership with administration •  Focused on enrollment events

•  Carnegie Mellon University •  Partnership with administration, but managed by students. •  Emphasizes enrollment of part time employees.

Overview of Pennsylvania Outreach


Other Community College Events

•  Miami Dade Community College

•  More than 500 students served

•  City Colleges of Chicago •  Enrollment events planned in

every campus •  At the first event, 225 student

attended; almost half went all the way through the enrollment process


ü The Dean of Student Affairs ü President’s Office ü Student Health Clinic ü Organization that connects students to financial benefits

Who to Talk to at Community Colleges


•  Host and promote enrollment events •  Send information to students •  Allow your organization to table on campus

What to Ask


Enlist the school’s help promoting the event. ü School-wide email that includes RSVP link ü Social media ü Campus newspaper/radio

Tips for Hosting Successful Events


•  1:10 assister to consumer ratio

•  Make sure to have assisters who can assist consumers in Spanish

•  Have Navigators give a brief presentation before they have students create accounts and look through their options.

Have Navigators and/or CACs Present


III. Tips on Monitoring & Evaluation

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Develop an Evaluation Plan Before You Implement

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•  Identify which outreach strategies and partners reach the most consumers

•  Basis for future funding requests Why evaluate?

•  How will you know if your strategy was effective? •  What outcomes will you be measuring?

Things to consider…

•  How did consumers hear about your organization? •  How did they get your phone number? •  How did they come to attend a particular enrollment event? •  How many consumers created an account? Successfully enrolled?

Suggested Questions:

Collect information that will help you build a better system for next year: When do you ‘lose’ consumers? What helps get consumers ready to buy insurance? How many times do you talk to a consumer before they sign up? What are the barriers/ questions people have?


How to Engage Faith Communities in Outreach Monday, March 3, 2014 at 4:00 p.m. ET Creating an Earned Media Strategy: Fast Ways to Engage Local Media and Motivate Consumers Tuesday, March 4, 2014 at 4:00 p.m. ET Conducting Effective Enrollment Events and How to Get More Support Wednesday, March 5, 2014 at 4:00 p.m. ET

Future Webinars in this Series


IV. Q&A

Health & Medicine

Engaging Community Colleges in Outreach and Enrollment