Prestigious accreditation reflects AU Registrar’s commitment to learners
Athabasca University (AU) Registrar Richard MacLeod is now among a small, elite group of enrolment management professionals to complete a prestigious professional-development program.
The American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admission Officers (AACRAO) has only awarded the Strategic Enrollment Management (SEM) Endorsement to 42 individuals internationally. He is the fourth Canadian and the second Albertan to receive the award.
“Strategic Enrolment Management is the cornerstone of matching processes and procedures to maximize student success,” he said. “It feels great to have completed this endorsement and to be only the fourth Canadian to have accomplished this to date.”
This endorsement means MacLeod has developed his skills in the field of strategic enrolment management to meet the current and future challenges in the industry.
Through a series of professional-development courses, completed over two years, he demonstrated proficiencies in enrolment management functions and best practices—things he has brought to bear in his role at AU over the years.
“As an open online university, Athabasca University has many distinct opportunities to assist students in their academic success,” he said. “We have piloted several SEM activities related to ‘nudging’ learners to complete their program and encouraging them to keep pace in their courses.”
These activities will be more fully realized under the new Integrated Learning Environment over the next 18 months, as AU gets new tools to better assist and support learners.
MacLeod has been AU’s Registrar since April 2014, with more than 25 years of experience working in post-secondary education. He has led many student-service initiatives including multiple Student Information System implementations, Strategic Enrolment Management plan creation and execution, and front-line service unification.
His efforts to achieve this designation from the AACRAO, an internationally recognized professional association of more than 11,000 higher-education professionals, is in line with AU’s institutional commitment to lifelong learning through open admissions and flexible scheduling.
“Putting myself in the shoes of our learners who balance work, family and education has helped me appreciate the dedication it takes to be a lifelong learner,” he said.
To get started—or continue—your own path to lifelong learning, find out more about the programs and courses available at Athabasca University.
