Creation of Office of Advancement

After an organization review, Oak Ridge Military established the Office of Advancement in October 2013. That office employees a team approach of life-cycle management of Cadets. The office consists of three team members, each with individual expertise and responsibilities for marketing, admissions, and college/career counseling, respectively.Marketing assumes team lead during those seasons of the year when opportunities are best suited to promote the name and mission of Oak Ridge Military Academy. Marketing includes advertising, web site oversight, media liaison, and coordination with parent/alumni ambassadors who promote the Academy. Marketing is forward looking and seeks to draw positive attention to the Academy. Marketing threads throughout all that everyone does at Oak Ridge Military Academy. While marketing may not always be the main effort of all that we do, it remains a key underpinning that makes us known to others. The intent of marketing is always related to growing the enrollment of the Academy. This is how marketing feeds prospective applicants into the admissions process.Admissions forms the second of three legs in the strategy of growing enrollment. Admissions receives inquiries generated by marketing. Those inquiries are developed into campus visits and potential applicants. Until the applicant is interviewed, in-processed and handed to the Academic Dean as a student, the applicant is the responsibility of admissions. The admissions officer is parent/ student advocate, salesman, cheerleader, and guide throughout the in-processing efforts of the team. During its season, the main effort of Advancement Team will be focused on admissions.However, during other times admissions and marketing must turn their attention to life after Oak Ridge and consider College Counseling opportunities to display the success of academic college- preparatory education by the enrollment of graduates into institutions of higher learning. Therefore, college/career counseling forms the third leg of the Advancement Office. Like marketing and admissions, there will be seasons when college/career counseling is served as the main effort of the team. At other times counseling will support marketing or admissions.This approach has been enthusiastically received by parents, Cadets, and university recruiters and yielded exceptional effectiveness due to the unity of effort of key functions. Efficiencies gained enabled the Academy to reduce overall staffing of the office by 40% compared to three separate functional areas.