Joseph Howard

Joseph E. Howard, MS

  • Vice President for Enrollment

Education

  • MS, Organizational Leadership (2009)
    Mercyhurst University (PA)
  • BA, Sociology (2003)
    Mercyhurst University (PA)

About Me

As Vice President for Enrollment, I provide leadership for Undergraduate Admissions, Graduate and Continuing Studies Admissions, the University Registrar, and Student Financial Services (including Financial Aid and the Bursar).

My team and I are responsible for shaping the university's overall enrollment strategy, encompassing recruitment initiatives, admissions policies, financial aid strategies, yield management, and data-driven analysis and predictive modeling. We collaborate with colleagues across the university to help prospective students and their families understand the value of a Widener education and work as champions to remove obstacles to enrollment and matriculation.

As a scholar of higher education, I also support campus stakeholders in understanding the demographic, competitive, and public policy landscape influencing the broader field. As a first-generation college student, I am especially committed to initiatives that expand opportunities for students from under-resourced and underserved backgrounds, advancing our mission to foster social mobility.

I value collaboration and innovation and strive to cultivate these capacities in others. Additionally, I enjoy engaging current students in our work, particularly those with interests in data science and analytics, providing them with meaningful, real-world experiences that contribute to the university's success.

Research Interests

  • Machine learning
  • Data science
  • Admissions
  • Financial aid
  • Access and equity
  • Institutional effectiveness

Publications

  • Meizlish, D. S., Wright, M. C., Howard, J., & Kaplan, M. L. (2018). Measuring the effect of a new faculty program using institutional data. International Journal for Academic Development, 23(2), 72-85.
  • Bastedo, M. N., Howard, J. E., & Flaster, A. (2016). Holistic admissions after affirmative action: Does “maximizing” the high school curriculum matter? Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 38(2), 389-409.
  • Wright, M. C., & Howard, J. E. (2015). Assessment for improvement: Two models for assessing a large quantitative reasoning requirement. Numeracy: Advancing Education in Quantitative Literacy, 8(1).
  • Howard, Joseph E. (2015). Stata command reference. https://bit.ly/3B1HrlF

News

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