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SOU decides to market itself University is looking for a consultant to help create a public relations office By ALEX BREITLER In an effort to increase its appeal to prospective students, Southern Oregon University is seeking a marketing consultant. The temporary position would help get SOU ready to open an Office of University Relations in the summer of 1999. SOU President Stephen Reno has called for increased marketing efforts since the Oregon University System this summer adopted a new budget model making universities more dependent on the tuition revenue they raise and less dependent on the state. Aimed at making the schools more innovative and accountable, the plan distributes state funds on a per-student basis and to programs targeted toward specific goals. "This encourages us to be very conscious of our enrollment management," said Mary Ellen Fleeger, SOU executive dean to the president. Fleeger, who is coordinating the search, said the new marketing approach will reflect SOU's strategic plan, which recommends better internal communication as well as greater visibility to the public. SOU's proposed change is evidence of a growing trend, Fleeger added. "A lot of universities are going to an integrative marketing approach," she said. The University of Oregon has gone one step further: marketing directly to students in other countries. The school has hired its first international recruiter to increase the number of foreign students in Eugene, whose higher tuition can help make up for drops in state taxpayer support. In Ashland, the Office of University Relations would combine SOU's government relations, institutional research, marketing and public relations departments. It will replace SOU's news service, scheduled to close in June of 1999. The consultant will recommend which changes the university should make in its new approach to marketing. In doing so, the consultant will study SOU's current marketing practices and expenses, deciding on a long-range advertising plan. Details of a new marketing and public relations director will also be planned out; that person will head the Office of University Relations. The consultant will work on which areas need to be focused on when the new position is filled. SOU will take bids for the position, so Fleeger isn't yet sure how much the job will cost. The consultant will be hired in December with work beginning in January. Fleeger hopes the job can be wrapped up by March with the recommended changes taking effect in the summer when the Office of University Relations opens. Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1998, Medford, Oregon USA