Manhattan College has partnered with GoalQuest, Inc., a New York-based higher education company that creates comprehensive retention solutions using a Web-based technology known as FYRe™ (for Freshman Year Retention). The new partnership will provide the College with custom-created content and real-time reporting data to help evaluate student satisfaction and progress during their first year on campus. It will also allow the school to quickly identify those who may be at risk of attrition.

Approximately ten years ago, Manhattan College began executing a recruiting strategy to increase the size and academic caliber of its student body. The College, whose first-year class includes significant populations of first-generation and commuting students, has since succeeded in enhancing both the quantity and quality of its new students.

"We recognized a need to communicate with our students using more sophisticated and more interactive technologies," said William J. Bisset, Jr., Assistant Vice President of Enrollment Management at Manhattan College. "Just as we've updated the technology employed in our classrooms and libraries, we're now applying innovative technologies to help support and retain the students we've worked hard to recruit."

Like many institutions, Manhattan College had previously employed a first-year experience course to help new students make the transition from high school to college. When the course was eliminated three years ago, the College sought to replace it with a cost-effective retention curriculum that could also help guide students who have not declared a major.

"With over 65 percent of its freshman class undeclared, Manhattan College required an efficient means of connecting students with the campus resources that could help them better define their educational and career paths," said GoalQuest Chief Executive Officer, Peter Kraft. "By immersing students in compelling editorial content combined with enticing interactive features, FYRe will help increase students' chances of personal fulfillment and academic excellence."

The program's content and interactive components will cover subjects such as securing financial aid and scholarships, living in New York City, preparing for college level coursework and balancing a job alongside academic work. The program will also include specialized content for the more than 20 percent of Manhattan College freshmen who commute to the Bronx campus. Several feature articles will encourage commuters to become more involved in campus activities and student life and to make best use of the hours they spend on campus.

The College chose the GoalQuest FYRe program despite strong retention statistics-the school retains approximately 85 percent of students between freshman and sophomore year. "While we recognize our strong retention history, we wanted to build a preventative program to maintain our success and improve our communication with at-risk populations, including undecided and commuter students," said Bisset.

About Manhattan College
Manhattan College was founded in 1853 upon the Lasallian heritage of excellence in teaching, inspired by St. John Baptist de La Salle. Located in the Riverdale section of the Bronx, Manhattan College is an independent, Catholic, coeducational institution of higher learning offering more than 40 major programs of study in the areas of arts, business, education, engineering and science. For more information about the College, visit www.manhattan.edu.

About GoalQuest
GoalQuest, Inc. is a New York City-based software company specializing in innovative solutions for higher education. The Company's proprietary software assists colleges and universities in maximizing recruiting, enrollment yield, retention, parent communication and advancement efforts. The GoalQuest suite, including eCRUIT™, EYOp™, FYRe™, PICS™ and AlumNet™, is based on a revolutionary technology that deploys relevant information and interactive experiences to targeted audiences through specific time-released "nuggets" of content. Clients facilitate reporting sessions and automated critical activity alerts to monitor the real-time interest trajectory of users. GoalQuest's suite of retention and student assessment tools is NASPA-approved. For additional information about GoalQuest, please visit the company's Web site at http://www.goalquest.com.