University Hires New Dean of Undergraduate Admissions
By Angelica Sisson
James Dewey-Rosenfeld, the current Associate Director of Undergraduate Admissions at Babson College in Wellesley, Massachusetts, has been hired as the new Dean of Undergraduate Admissions at Catholic University beginning on June 1.
Babson enrolled its largest class after the most selective process of admissions in the school’s history during Dewey-Rosenfeld’s time there. Babson, with about 3,300 undergraduates, has a similar enrollment to Catholic University and boasts a similar liberal arts curriculum.
A major difference between the two schools is the acceptance rate. Babson College accepted 26.3 percent of applicants last year, compared to Catholic University’s 74.7 percent, according to the US News and World Report.
“James Dewey-Rosenfeld has shown a clear passion for undergraduate admissions over the course of his career,” said President John Garvey in the press release announcing this new hire. “I am excited to have him leading our admissions team as we work to meet new and ambitious enrollment goals.”
Undergraduate admissions at Catholic University has seen several changes recently to reach these new, ambitious, and as of now unstated enrollment goals. The most notable of these changes occurred last semester, when Catholic University made standardized testing optional for its applicants.
In a statement regarding this change Garvey said it was done because research shows, “that a student’s academic program in high school and his or her classroom performance are the best predictors of academic success.”
The next class of incoming students will be the first to have applied and been accepted in a test-optional atmosphere at Catholic University. With the new hire of Dewey-Rosenfeld the future of admissions at Catholic University may continue to see changes.
Dewey-Rosenfeld is positive about his new appointment to Catholic University. Dewey-Rosenfeld said he chose Catholic University not because of the research he did or because of the articles written about it but because when he sat down with faculty, staff, and President Garvey, the potentiality of the school became clear.
As for what he hopes to bring to the school, Dewey-Rosenfeld said his goal is “to make sure our staff is representing Catholic University wherever we travel, in the best way we possibly can, really telling the story of this school and how it can appeal to so many different students.”
