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A Bulldog in Big D: Louisiana Tech recruiter helps DFW students fulfill college dreams
A fourth generation Louisiana Tech University graduate is living in Dallas-Fort Worth and recruiting students to become a part of Bulldog Country.
Daniel Dupuy, coordinator of targeted programs for Louisiana Tech in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, most often spends his days contacting counselors, visiting with high school students, and providing insight on Louisiana Tech. He is helping high school students in the area understand the opportunities that a college education can afford them and to highlight the value and return on investment that Louisiana Tech can offer.
“I like to look at it as a way for me to hopefully give back to the great university that has given me so much,” Dupuy said. “Recruiting in Dallas-Fort Worth is a little different than recruiting from Ruston because I do not work in an office. I am constantly working on the road and from my apartment. There is a much larger pool of students to recruit, but a majority of them have never heard of Louisiana Tech nor have a clue about where we are located. For recruiting in Louisiana, most of the students know or at least have heard of Louisiana Tech.”
Recent national rankings highlight return on investment (ROI), value and opportunities that Dupuy is sharing with prospective students. PayScale.com’s 2014 College ROI Report ranked Louisiana Tech University No. 1 among all Louisiana universities in ROI, for both in-state and out-of-state students. BestColleges.com recently ranked Louisiana Tech No. 48 in the nation in highest ROI, while AdvisorOne ranked Tech No. 1 in Louisiana and No. 21 in the nation for best ROI.
Dupuy is meeting the challenges of informing prospective students in north Texas about his north Louisiana alma mater through coffee chats, which gives him an opportunity to connect with students, and recruiting tailgates with the Alumni Center.
“We are coordinating a recruiting event alongside the alumni center’s pre-game tailgate for the Heart of Dallas Bowl,” he said. “Dr. (Jim) King, our vice president of student advancement, made it possible for me to invite admitted and prospective students to this game. This will give them the opportunity to take advantage of seeing the Tech game day atmosphere and football game right here in their backyard in hopes that they will each bring a friend giving us more exposure to students in the area.”
King said Dupuy and his mission have been well received in the Dallas-Fort Worth community.
“His enthusiasm about the university is obvious, and his message seems to resonate with prospective students in the area,” he said. “This is a pilot study. We’ve never as a university managed a remote workforce; we’ve always had a very centralized model of recruiting. People reside here, and we dispatch them. We have identified markets that align well with Louisiana Tech in terms of our degree offerings and academic preparation. There are a number of markets that have promise, particularly north Houston and south Louisiana. There are many people who are unfamiliar with north Louisiana. We’ve found if they come visit our campus, they are so pleasantly surprised with what Louisiana Tech has to offer.”
Andy Cline, assistant director of admissions, said that the recruitment strategy of stationing Dupuy in Dallas aligns with the university’s long-range goals as outlined in its Tech 2020 strategic plan.
“In order for Louisiana Tech to meet our student recruitment goals, we will have to expand our markets,” Cline said. “As a Tier One national research university, a decision was made that in order for us to excel in our recruitment classes, we had to get a foothold in new markets outside the state of Louisiana. One of those markets is Dallas, which has over 5,000 Tech alumni in its population.”
And even though Dupuy has only been in Dallas-Fort Worth since August, recruitment numbers are already beginning to rise.
“Our recruitment numbers are improving,” Cline said. “Through increased visits and interactions with Dallas-Fort Worth area students, Daniel is spreading the word about Louisiana Tech University which is slowly improving overall awareness of students.
Dupuy said the quality of students in Dallas-Fort Worth who meet Louisiana Tech’s admissions criteria, the diverse population of students and the number of students who meet the criteria for the Bulldog Out-of-State Fee Scholarship make Louisiana Tech just as attractive as many of the top institutions in Texas.
“We become very attractive to most of these students through our Bulldog Out-of-State Fee Scholarship which will grant them in-state tuition by meeting the scholarship criteria,” Dupuy said. “Most of these students have grown up in DFW and are looking to go to school where they can get a more personal touch in the classroom and ways for them to get involved on campus. Our admissions office and campus departments do a great job of on-campus engagement when these students make the trip over for a personal visit.
“We hope that more Dallas-Fort Worth high school students who are preparing to graduate will look to the east and discover the outstanding opportunities and value that Louisiana Tech can offer.”
Written by Judith Roberts – jroberts@latech.edu
Daniel Dupuy, coordinator of targeted programs for Louisiana Tech in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, most often spends his days contacting counselors, visiting with high school students, and providing insight on Louisiana Tech. He is helping high school students in the area understand the opportunities that a college education can afford them and to highlight the value and return on investment that Louisiana Tech can offer.
Daniel Dupuy (right) makes his home in Dallas and talks about Louisiana Tech with prospective student in the DFW Metroplex.
“I like to look at it as a way for me to hopefully give back to the great university that has given me so much,” Dupuy said. “Recruiting in Dallas-Fort Worth is a little different than recruiting from Ruston because I do not work in an office. I am constantly working on the road and from my apartment. There is a much larger pool of students to recruit, but a majority of them have never heard of Louisiana Tech nor have a clue about where we are located. For recruiting in Louisiana, most of the students know or at least have heard of Louisiana Tech.”
Recent national rankings highlight return on investment (ROI), value and opportunities that Dupuy is sharing with prospective students. PayScale.com’s 2014 College ROI Report ranked Louisiana Tech University No. 1 among all Louisiana universities in ROI, for both in-state and out-of-state students. BestColleges.com recently ranked Louisiana Tech No. 48 in the nation in highest ROI, while AdvisorOne ranked Tech No. 1 in Louisiana and No. 21 in the nation for best ROI.
Dupuy is meeting the challenges of informing prospective students in north Texas about his north Louisiana alma mater through coffee chats, which gives him an opportunity to connect with students, and recruiting tailgates with the Alumni Center.
“We are coordinating a recruiting event alongside the alumni center’s pre-game tailgate for the Heart of Dallas Bowl,” he said. “Dr. (Jim) King, our vice president of student advancement, made it possible for me to invite admitted and prospective students to this game. This will give them the opportunity to take advantage of seeing the Tech game day atmosphere and football game right here in their backyard in hopes that they will each bring a friend giving us more exposure to students in the area.”
King said Dupuy and his mission have been well received in the Dallas-Fort Worth community.
“His enthusiasm about the university is obvious, and his message seems to resonate with prospective students in the area,” he said. “This is a pilot study. We’ve never as a university managed a remote workforce; we’ve always had a very centralized model of recruiting. People reside here, and we dispatch them. We have identified markets that align well with Louisiana Tech in terms of our degree offerings and academic preparation. There are a number of markets that have promise, particularly north Houston and south Louisiana. There are many people who are unfamiliar with north Louisiana. We’ve found if they come visit our campus, they are so pleasantly surprised with what Louisiana Tech has to offer.”
Andy Cline, assistant director of admissions, said that the recruitment strategy of stationing Dupuy in Dallas aligns with the university’s long-range goals as outlined in its Tech 2020 strategic plan.
“In order for Louisiana Tech to meet our student recruitment goals, we will have to expand our markets,” Cline said. “As a Tier One national research university, a decision was made that in order for us to excel in our recruitment classes, we had to get a foothold in new markets outside the state of Louisiana. One of those markets is Dallas, which has over 5,000 Tech alumni in its population.”
And even though Dupuy has only been in Dallas-Fort Worth since August, recruitment numbers are already beginning to rise.
“Our recruitment numbers are improving,” Cline said. “Through increased visits and interactions with Dallas-Fort Worth area students, Daniel is spreading the word about Louisiana Tech University which is slowly improving overall awareness of students.
Dupuy said the quality of students in Dallas-Fort Worth who meet Louisiana Tech’s admissions criteria, the diverse population of students and the number of students who meet the criteria for the Bulldog Out-of-State Fee Scholarship make Louisiana Tech just as attractive as many of the top institutions in Texas.
“We become very attractive to most of these students through our Bulldog Out-of-State Fee Scholarship which will grant them in-state tuition by meeting the scholarship criteria,” Dupuy said. “Most of these students have grown up in DFW and are looking to go to school where they can get a more personal touch in the classroom and ways for them to get involved on campus. Our admissions office and campus departments do a great job of on-campus engagement when these students make the trip over for a personal visit.
“We hope that more Dallas-Fort Worth high school students who are preparing to graduate will look to the east and discover the outstanding opportunities and value that Louisiana Tech can offer.”
Written by Judith Roberts – jroberts@latech.edu
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