Page 18 - 2017/2018 Salesanium Annual Report

Admissions & Enrollment
Demand for a Salesianum education
remains steady, and the 2017–18 school
year began with an enrollment of 1,017 students. The admissions office gained needed bandwidth during the year with the addition of a full-time staff member, Barbara Palena, who has long served the admissions office, but in a part-time role. With the additional staff power, the admissions office is focused on providing
a more personal experience for all applicants, meeting one-to-one with more prospective students and their families.
In addition to the emphasis on personally engaging with student applicants, the admissions office has also developed new programming to involve seventh graders, so they can get a jump-start on their Salesianum experience. Through a series of seventh- grade visit days, students and their families visit the campus to get a glimpse of the life of a Salesianum
Gentleman and begin to have their questions about the school answered.
The number of applicants to Salesianum’s class of 2021 dropped slightly over the prior year; however, the talent of the applicant pool increased, with the average entrance exam score increasing marginally over the prior year, but continuing a year-over-year increase that began in 2014. More significantly, the yield on the top-performing students admitted to Salesianum increased to 60% for the class
of 2021. Collectively, these data are viewed as a positive step toward attracting the best students to Salesianum and building upon the school’s strong academic reputation.
Finally, the percentage of students from traditionally underrepresented populations crept up to 15.2%, continuing a positive trend that began with the class of 2016. The largest growth was among Hispanic students, but all underrepresented populations saw growth in
the class of 2021. Salesianum is continuing to develop new strategies to attract students from a wide variety of backgrounds to honor our mission and history as a private school accessible to all.
Originating Schools of the Members of the Class of 2021
Home States of the Members of the Class of 2021
Underrepresented Populations by Percentage of Class
Catholic School
Public School
Private School
48%
26%
23%
Delaware
Pennsylvania
New Jersey
67%
26%
4%
2015
2016
2017
10.5%
7.9%
11.6%
12.5%
15.5%
13.7%
15.2%
Other 3% Maryland 3% 2018
2019
2020
2021
16 SALESIANUM SCHOOL ANNUAL REPORT | 2017-18