DECEMBER 03, 2021, KEIZERTIMES, PAGE A5
Chemeketa grant writer seeks funding to recruit
and retain students as enrollment keeps falling
BY RACHEL ALEXANDER
Of SalemReporter.com
Gaelen McAllister’s father wasn’t a
typical college student.
After immigrating to the U.S. from
Ireland, he worked as an engineer for a
railroad in southern California. When
it was bought out by a company that
required all engineers to have college
degrees, he enrolled in community col-
lege to get a two-year civil engineering
degree.
“He just needed something that said
'engineer' on it,” McAllister said.
That educational path is front of
mind in McAllister’s work as the direc-
tor of grant development at Chemeketa
Community College, where she’s
helped secure millions of dollars for
college programs intended to attract
and retain more students.
“I've experienced in my family how
important it is to have options to let
people access education,” McAllister
said.
McAllister came to Chemeketa in
the fall of 2019, the latest step in her
career working for nonprofi t and edu-
cational organizations in grant writing
and development. She most recently
worked for Garten Services, a nonprofi t
serving people with developmental dis-
abilities, and has lived in Salem since
1994.
Since McAllister took on the role in
late 2019, the college has won $15.9 mil-
lion in competitive grants.
Many of them focus on specifi c pro-
grams to recruit new students and make
it easier for them to attend college.
Those include the recent Job Corps
Scholars program, a $1.1 million grant
from the U.S. Department of Labor to
off er career-focused certifi cates and
programs to young adults.
“It’s a great opportunity for anybody
who wants to come and do a one-year
certifi cate program,” McAllister said.
“It provides total funding for students,
even for things like childcare if they
need it.”
Other recent awards include funds
from the U.S. Department of Agriculture
to boost the number of Hispanic stu-
dents in agriculture programs, and a
National Science Foundation award to
improve enrollment in science, technol-
ogy, engineering and math programs.
The college has a federal designa-
tion as a Hispanic-Serving Institution,
meaning at least 25% of the student
body is Hispanic, which opens up other
grant opportunities.
McAllister works closely with
Chemeketa faculty and staff to iden-
tify areas where the college might be
able to secure money. When she iden-
tifi es something she thinks fi ts with
Chemeketa’s goals and strategic plan,
she’ll send it to the dean to review and
see if there’s interest and time to put
together a proposal.
Her work is key as the college looks
to chart a path forward after years of
declining enrollment, including a sharp
drop at the start of the pandemic.
Chemeketa’s fall enrollment was
9,460 students this year, dropping from
9,832 in the fall of 2020. In fall 2019, the
college had 11,869 students.
Those numbers aren’t unique to
Chemeketa - Oregon community col-
leges collectively lost nearly one in four
students from the fall of 2019 to 2020
as the pandemic hit and classes moved
online. This fall, the statewide drop was
less than 1%, but colleges have a lot of
ground to recover.
Jessica Howard, Chemeketa’s presi-
dent, said the college’s initial pandemic
drop in students included many who
were eligible for federal Pell grants,
which are given to students who have
signifi cant fi nancial need.
Through both grant programs and
Chemeketa’s share of federal COVID
aid, Howard said the college is focused
on helping students stay at Chemeketa
through eff orts like providing free dig-
ital textbooks and clearing some stu-
dent account balances so an unpaid fee
didn’t prevent students from enrolling
for next quarter.
“All of those supports for students
are designed to help them be success-
ful and to help keep students with us,”
Howard said.
She said the grant offi ce’s success
rate in getting funding has increased
recently, giving the college more ways
to recruit and retain students. That’s
key to longer-term plans to boost
enrollment.
“Our grants offi ce has really hit its
stride,” Howard said.
McAllister said discussions about
college are often focused on young
people who have just graduated high
school. In line with the college’s long-
term goals, she often looks for grants
that will help non-traditional students:
refugees who have recently arrived in
Salem, or mid-career professionals who
need a certifi cate to advance.
“We focus a lot on your typical four-
year degree, but there's other options
for students that might work better for
them, that might work better for what
they're interested in,” McAllister said.
She said it remains a challenge for
her to make sure prospective and cur-
rent Chemeketa students know about
the options available to help them and
the number of new programs available.
“I think it’s probably the most aff ord-
able time ever to come to college,” she
said.
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