Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, March 19, 1991 TAG: 9103190260
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-2 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: CATHRYN McCUE/ NEW RIVER VALLEY BUREAU
DATELINE: BLACKSBURG LENGTH: Medium
It reads:
"Congratulations! I have learned that [son's or daughter's name] has been offered admission to Virginia Tech."
It goes on to describe Blacksburg's mixture of small-town qualities, urban amenities and scenic beauty, and it invites the parents to visit.
It is hoped that they'll decide to send their son or daughter to Tech instead of some other university in some other town.
But neither Tech nor the town of Blacksburg paid for the mailing.
Citizens for Regional Progress, a group of business leaders, dished out more than $3,000 to send the letters to parents of students who have been offered admission to Tech next fall.
"We have been searching for a way to help Tech in ways we can afford," said Bill Ellenbogen, one of the group's founders and owner of Bogen's restaurant, a favorite student spot.
"This letter is something other universities aren't doing."
Although many colleges send follow-up information to accepted students, communities rarely do, Ellenbogen said.
Tech and Blacksburg already have pared down their budgets to the core necessities and had no money to spare for the project, he said.
That's where the citizens group stepped in. "Believe it or not, our group is not dead. We've just been out of the news," Ellenbogen said.
Bankers, housing developers, real estate agents and other business people formed Citizens for Regional Progress last year. The group's chief aim is to convince Tech's administrators to increase enrollment from 23,000 students to about 30,000 in the coming years.
The citizens group also wants to help Tech expand in Southwest Virginia by supporting programs and legislation favorable to the school.
The university, however, is already short on space, and even shorter on cash, and cannot cope with more students, Tech administrators say.
But competition among schools for students will be keen for at least the next few years, as the number of high school graduates is projected to decline.
Ellenbogen said that recruiting students is a crucial area where his group can help.
Money for the mayor's letter came from private donations, "with no direct benefit to us."
Hedgepeth, in the one-page letter, extols the qualities of Blacksburg - the bike trails linking apartment complexes to campus, the bus system, outdoor activities in the Jefferson National Forest, a low cost of living, clean air, and friendly people.
Tech spokesman Darrell Martin said the university plans to send a total of 10,000 letters of acceptance to freshmen. About 40 percent will choose Tech, he said.
Another 1,000 letters will go out to transfer students, about 600 of whom will likely choose Tech.
by CNB