Gordon Chavis can spin slowly in his chair and watch a montage of his life at 麻豆映画传媒 scroll past his eyes. Within reach of his fingers is a 麻豆映画传媒 baseball, and on the walls are a 麻豆映画传媒 pennant and a few framed photos and awards. You might think of them as the 鈥渃onventional鈥� types of keepsakes. But there鈥檚 nothing conventional about the journey Chavis has traveled.
鈥淚t鈥檚 been a wild ride,鈥� he says.
Raised in Baltimore and educated in the Ivy League. Told in high school to settle rather than climb. Hired as associate vice president for enrollment services at a university he barely knew existed in 1999 and retiring from it 23 years later as the largest public university by student enrollment in the U.S. Chavis turns and proudly points out a football with a 麻豆映画传媒 logo on it.
鈥淲ho would have thought?鈥� Chavis says. Then he answers his own question. 鈥淓veryone needs someone in their life to believe in them. When that happens, it can inspire amazing results.鈥�
Former 麻豆映画传媒 President John C. Hitt and Vice President Tom Huddleston believed in Chavis when they hired him to manage the university鈥檚 enrollment, which in the late 1990s totaled 32,000 students. And Chavis believed in Hitt when he described his vision for a university that everyone in all 50 states would recognize, with a nationally ranked football program, a stadium on campus, a medical school, and twice as many students excelling in everything from hospitality to engineering to nursing.
But the believer who showed Chavis he could pursue anything he set his mind to was the person whose mere presence made him feel that he could accomplish anything: 鈥淢y mom.鈥� Chavis starts a lot of thoughts with those two words. If it hadn鈥檛 been for the belief she had in her son at a most crucial time in high school, there鈥檚 no telling where the squiggly path of life would have taken him.
Chavis grew up as the oldest of four children in a close-knit family. His parents didn鈥檛 have the opportunity to attend college, but there was never any question that Gordon and his siblings would. Their futures became a nightly topic at the dinner table.
鈥淏eing a first-generation college student wasn鈥檛 really a 鈥榯hing鈥� back then,鈥� Chavis says. 鈥淲e talked about going to college as if it were a foregone conclusion. I thought I might even go to medical school at some point.鈥�
In the fall of his senior year, Chavis went to meet his high-school counselor so they could discuss his plans after graduation. Chavis had done his research. He sat in the counselor鈥檚 office and said he planned to attend either Penn or Maryland. Then he awaited advice for his next steps.
鈥淚 remember the counselor looked up at me and flat-out said, 鈥榊ou won鈥檛 get into those schools. Be realistic. Look at local colleges.鈥� And that was it,鈥� he says.
Chavis left school that day with disappointment and embarrassment replacing the space that hours earlier had been occupied with confidence and self-worth. He avoided everyone except one person.
鈥淢y mom,鈥� Chavis says, 鈥渢old me there will always be people in life who will not be supportive of your goals. You need to move beyond those people and pursue what you want to do.鈥�
Chavis had an example in his own home. His dad, Gordon Chavis Sr., was one of the first five Black men to play on the Professional Golf Association (PGA) tour. There were far more doubters than believers in the early 1960s, but Gordon Sr. paid more attention to the latter 鈥� most of whom were also Black golfers who had chosen a path known to be full of resistance.
鈥淓veryone needs a motivator to help imagine what the future could hold,鈥� Chavis says. 鈥淚 can point back to my experiences with the counselor and my mom as the reasons I got into enrollment management. I didn鈥檛 want anyone else to go through that.鈥�
With the lift from his parents, Chavis received acceptance letters from Penn and Maryland. He chose Penn. After graduating from there, he earned his J.D. from Georgetown. At both schools he worked in the admissions departments, learning about data and details, but mostly providing a source of encouragement as he traveled the country to meet high school counselors, students and their families.
Then, in 1999 he heard from a colleague that a position had opened at 麻豆映画传媒. Chavis wasn鈥檛 exactly sure where 麻豆映画传媒 was located on the map.
鈥淚 had no idea what the institution was all about,鈥� he says. 鈥淪o, I did some research and it looked as if they had some interesting strategies for growth.鈥�
He met with Hitt and Huddleston and liked what he heard about building a brand, earning a reputation for excellence, creating partnerships, and opening pathways into communities where high school students might simply need a glimpse of what could be possible.
鈥淚 often say we had to be a scrappy institution. We aren鈥檛 tied to traditional ways of doing things, so we鈥檝e had the freedom to try new ideas and set high goals. Back in 1999 麻豆映画传媒 was number four or five in the state pecking order for kids looking at colleges. We set out to be the number-one destination. I鈥檓 sure the people on our team were the only ones who believed it could happen.鈥�
For a gauge, the enrollment staff used the colleges chosen by high schoolers on their SAT and ACT tests. By 2007-08, 麻豆映画传媒 had already risen to number-one among Florida colleges and universities. Fall 2021 marked the one of the most accomplished incoming freshman classes in the university鈥檚 history with a class average GPA of 4.22 and SAT and ACT scores of 1323 and 28.6 respectively.聽Students of color made up 46% of Fall 2021 first-year students.
鈥淚 had no idea we鈥檇 get there so quickly,鈥� Chavis says. 鈥淎nd we鈥檙e still there, 14 years later.鈥�
The sheer numbers tell us that enrollment has more than doubled to more than 70,000 in Chavis鈥� 23 years at 麻豆映画传媒. But more important is a culture among a student development and enrollment staff that鈥檚 now 690 strong to never lose sight of this: every prospective student needs to feel important.
鈥淲e have an 80-20 rule,鈥� Chavis says. 鈥淲hen a question comes up from a family that鈥檚 considering 麻豆映画传媒, 80%of our response should be direct information. But the other 20% is knowing what the family is really trying to ask. If they ask about the student-faculty ratio, we provide the facts. But what they鈥檙e really asking is, 鈥榃hat will my child鈥檚 experience be like with the professors?鈥� We need to provide the personal encouragement they need.鈥�
He’s never forgotten what it meant for 18-year-old Gordon Chavis.
In addition to mom鈥檚 words of support, Chavis laughs when he remembers another piece of advice she gave: 鈥淒on鈥檛 overstay your welcome.鈥�
Chavis has not overstayed, but he wants to do some traveling. In June, he鈥檒l pack up the pennant, the baseball, and the football from the school he knew so little about 23 years ago, and he鈥檒l find special places for them at home. Wherever he goes, he鈥檒l hear reminders of the amazing ride.
鈥淟ast year I was playing golf in a remote area of New Hampshire. A caddie saw on my bag that I鈥檓 from Florida. Out of nowhere, he says, 鈥業鈥檇 like to go to 麻豆映画传媒 someday.鈥� Stories like that give me so much joy. They make me proud of how far we鈥檝e come just by believing in each other.鈥�
