April 17, 2015 | SharkAdmin Northwest Vista College is in the perfect place and time to seize the opportunity to grow – not just in enrollment, but in partnerships, size and brand awareness. It’s estimated that 40 percent of San Antonio’s residential growth over the next decade will be in far Northwest San Antonio – and the vast majority of growth in the Westover Hills area. That’s not hard to believe since Forbes recently named San Antonio as one of “America’s Fastest-Growing Cities 2015” But along with all this growth, we must keep telling our story and explain the value of our educational mission to our residents, business and civic organizations, and firms doing business in the area. We have a unique and impactful story to share. At just 20 years old, we are the third largest college/university institution in San Antonio, growing from just 12 students to over 16,000. While we are exploring ways to accommodate more students in terms of scheduling, expanded delivery modalities and identification of new student markets, we must continue our commitment to assess the current status of educational services provided through NVC and strive to improve our processes and remain innovators in education. That said, we can’t keep our quality programs, accomplishments and beautiful campus to ourselves. I am bothered when it is suggested that NVC is the best kept secret in San Antonio. If that is the case, then we are not doing our jobs. It’s amazing to me when I speak about NVC, how many people who have seen our signs on the highway (namely HWY 151), but haven’t ventured past our trees. One of my goals is to be your spokesman and cheerleader in an effort to spread the good news and San Antonio treasure we know as Northwest Vista College. So far, I’ve shared our story on several television talk shows, radio broadcasts, and in print media, at a recent breakfast hosted by the North San Antonio Chamber of Commerce, gave a campus tour to San Antonio District 6 Councilman Ray Lopez, met with several local corporate CEO’s and Westover Hills Developer Marty Wender and have reached out to speak to the West San Antonio Chamber of Commerce. I was also fortunate enough recently to be a part of Breaking Down Walls “2015 Bowling with the Stars Event” in San Antonio. The organization’s mission is to provide youth with affordable sports learning programs. In the months to come, I’m hoping to continue meeting with neighborhood and area leaders to let them know we are valuable resource in the city and are ready and able to be a major player in the future population and economic growth in northwest San Antonio. The best marketing we can do is by word of mouth! Please join me in spreading the NVC story.
