Finalist Shao wants Winthrop to admit more out-of-state students, embrace business community

Alan Shao, one of three finalists hoping to be Winthrop University’s next president, says the school needs to accept more students from outside South Carolina – who would pay higher tuition – to help pay for employee pay raises, scholarships, an overhaul of the school’s marketing efforts, and other projects.

School leaders already have a goal of growing Winthrop’s student body by 1,000 during the next few years. Current enrollment is about 6,000.

Shao says he can help Winthrop meet that goal and, at the same time, improve the school’s financial position. On Tuesday, during a presentation to more than 200 people on campus, Shao said Winthrop’s finances need some work. Enrollment gains and “aggressive” fundraising are steps in the right direction, he said.

Shao is currently dean of the school of business at the College of Charleston. He’s competing for the Winthrop presidency with two others: Kent State University’s Dan Mahony and the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga’s Jeff Elwell, both academic deans at public schools.

During his campus visit this week, Shao proposed that if Winthrop brings in the 1,000 new students it desires, half of those should come from out of state. Currently, about 10 percent of Winthrop students are from outside South Carolina, including nearly 200 international students.

The university should, Shao said, draw more students from Charlotte and its surrounding area, which is just north of Winthrop’s campus in Rock Hill.

Winthrop officials have tried before to attract more students from North Carolina by asking state lawmakers to allow the school to give a tuition discount to N.C. residents who would be required to pay out-of-state tuition. Students pay twice as much for out-of-state tuition at Winthrop.

Shao says if he’s selected president, he’d lobby lawmakers in both states to allow a partnership, paving the way for more North Carolina students to attend Winthrop.

When the idea was floated before, some N.C. public colleges opposed the plan. Currently, Winthrop can offer in-state tuition to some North Carolina residents who enroll as graduate students but it cannot do the same to undergraduates who are seeking four-year degrees.

Existing business and political relationships in Charlotte could benefit Shao at Winthrop. Prior to joining the College of Charleston, he spent two decades as a professor and administrator at UNC Charlotte. While there, he helped start new international study programs, and he was president of the N.C. World Trade Association.

Shao – a self-described “numbers person” – says raising Winthrop’s out-of-state headcount by just 1 percent, or less than 100 new students, would bring in an extra $1.6 million. That money could provide scholarships to S.C. students, he said.

“For that person that can’t afford to go to college, here’s an opportunity,” he said.

Under Shao’s proposal, other extra out-of-state tuition dollars would be distributed among Winthrop’s academic colleges.

If Winthrop can attract an additional 500 in-state students, he said, that money could be used toward pay equity for faculty and staff – a hot topic as state taxpayer allocations have dwindled, overall enrollment has remained flat, and Winthrop’s most recent president approved salary increases for top administrators of up to 33 percent.

Remaining money from in-state enrollment growth would be re-invested to improve Winthrop’s promotion of itself and the way it recruits students, Shao proposes.

On Tuesday, he told the campus community that’s where he really shines: marketing, branding and packaging an organization’s story. Shao has formerly owned his own businesses and worked as a marketing consultant for large corporations.

He pledged to couple his marketing expertise with a clear vision for Winthrop, if chosen as president. Under former Winthrop President Jamie Comstock Williamson – who was fired last summer by school trustees – the university faced instability after her departure and the campus had a “blurred vision,” Shao said.

Before that, retired President Anthony DiGiorgio, who served for 24 years, gave Winthrop strong leadership, Shao said. Now, Shao believes Winthrop is at “a crossroads.”

Winthrop grads should be ‘ready-to-work’

The university’s current presidential search is at a crossroads of its own.

Since June, Winthrop Provost Debra Boyd – the school’s chief academic officer with 30 years of experience at the university – has been serving as “acting president.”

All three presidential finalists have completed campus visits and held numerous in-person interviews with Winthrop trustees, students, faculty members and other employees over the past two weeks.

Trustees have not yet announced what day they plan to vote on the presidential finalists. They have said they want the successful candidate to start work by July and that they hope to select the school’s 11th president this spring.

Before reaching a decision, Winthrop’s Board of Trustees plans to hear feedback from various people on campus who were tapped to interview the finalists. Trustees also will read the results of an online survey.

Video of each finalists’ presentation will soon be available to the public on Winthrop’s website.

Shao wrapped up his Winthrop visit with a news conference on Tuesday afternoon, where he said he hopes he’d spend at least 10 years as president. By 2025, he said, “this would be a very different campus.”

His goal in higher education, Shao said, is to prepare college students for the workforce. He thinks a large part of Winthrop’s brand and “what it’s known for” should be its track record of producing successful students. The university, he said, needs to do a better job of tracking “student placement” data, which shows how many alumni are working in their degree field.

Before Tuesday’s news conference, some Winthrop professors told Shao they were somewhat anxious about his idea for establishing “advisory boards” on campus, made up of potential employers and business leaders. Shao has said advisory boards are a good way to keep degree options relevant, solicit continued financial support for the school, and to help students find jobs after graduation. Some faculty members said they would be nervous about any move to give the outside business community too much influence over Winthrop’s curriculum.

Shao assured concerned faculty members that his “ready-to-work” plan for students isn’t meant to change Winthrop into a trade school or technical college, or to relinquish control over academic decisions. General education and classes focused on liberal arts are important components of a four-year degree, he said.

But, he said, today’s economy is global and students need an entrepreneurial mindset to be successful. Winthrop will see enrollment gains if it becomes known as a place that graduates students who find great jobs after college, Shao said.

“The students is what this place is all about ... And the community will prosper if we develop tomorrow’s workforce to be optimal.”

This story was originally published March 3, 2015 at 1:53 PM with the headline "Finalist Shao wants Winthrop to admit more out-of-state students, embrace business community."