OpenApply Admissions Conference Milan: Full Schedule

OpenApply Admissions Conference "The Admissions Experience"

Hosted at the American School of Milan
Via Karl Marx, 14,
20090 Noverasco di Opera MI,
Italy

8:00am PDT

Day 1: Transportation from Grand Visconti Palace to American School of Milan

Friday March 29, 2019 8:00am - 8:30am PDT
Grand Visconti Palace

Transportation

8:30am PDT

Morning Tea & Registration

Friday March 29, 2019 8:30am - 9:00am PDT
Library

Networking

9:00am PDT

Welcoming Remarks

Speakers

MacKenzie Murray

Senior VP, Systems, OpenApply

MacKenzie is the Senior VP, Systems at Faria Education Group, a leading provider of information systems for international schools, currently supporting over 10,000 schools worldwide. Since joining Faria, MacKenzie has overseen over 800 schools take their admissions online with OpenApply... Read More →

Milan Company Update pdf

Friday March 29, 2019 9:00am - 9:15am PDT
Library

Networking

9:15am PDT

Admissions at the Crossroads of School Culture

There is a defining opportunity at international schools to create the culture of the future through each admission application, admitted student and family, as well as the cultural experiences and competencies each applicant and family bring to a school. While the common understanding is that a school’s culture is defined by its Mission Statement, academic programs, demographics, and/or extracurricular offerings, we would be remiss to forget that schools are populated by individuals and groups who will ultimately determine the course and culture of the school through their active or inactive participation.

This leaves Admissions Directors and their staffs at the crossroads of competing interests, both internally and externally, as families jockey for admission to international schools, while addressing the internal interests of admitting the “right” student(s). Admissions Directors and their staffs are so often caught in the middle between competing interests of applicants while balancing the fundamental interests of the school in academics, finance, culture, philosophy and advancement, just to name a few. This discussion will focus on why Admissions Directors and staff are so critical to the futures and cultures of their respective schools, the balancing acts they face and why defining the culture of admissions should be a part of any strategic conversation at international schools.

Speakers

Michael Smith

Director, American School of Valencia

Michael L. Smith is serving in his sixth year as the Director of the American School of Valencia, an international school with 850 students from 44 countries, after serving as a Head of School in Barcelona, Spain and Naples, Florida. Smith has made international education his profession... Read More →

Admissions at the Crossroads Michael pdf

Friday March 29, 2019 9:15am - 10:00am PDT
Library

General

10:00am PDT

Admissions & Inclusion

Anyone involved in admissions and support services will have noticed the changing admissions landscape with increasing numbers of applications coming from students with additional learning needs, either EAL or Learning Support. From her dual perspective as a learning support specialist who has also been a Director of Admissions, Sandra Helmig will explore ways to enable Admissions Offices to be able to acquire the relevant information those schools with an inclusive mission need in order to make 'best fit' admissions decisions. In her work, Sandra continues to navigate that grey area between operations and education, which have complementary but also at times clashing functions. Rather than providing 'the answer', Sandra will provide some first-hand insights and tested interventions which schools can adapt to their context to ensure their inclusive mission is achieved.

Speakers

Sandra Helmig

High School Learning Support Teacher, Inter-Community School Zurich

Sandra is currently in her second year as a High School Learning Support teacher at the Inter-Community School, Zürich, where she just completed a project on management in admissions. Previous to this she worked for six years as the Director of Admissions at NIST International... Read More →

Admissions & Inclusion Sandra pdf

Friday March 29, 2019 10:00am - 10:50am PDT
Library

General

10:50am PDT

Coffee Break

Friday March 29, 2019 10:50am - 11:20am PDT
Library

Networking

11:20am PDT

The ISB Experience Room After 1 Year: Lessons Learned

It has now been a little over one year since the International School of Brussels' Admissions Team inaugurated its ISB Experience Room for prospective families. The interactive meeting room models the kind of teaching and learning going on at ISB, gives voice to all family members and enables Admissions Officers to customize conversations and tours based on what is most important for the families when they are looking for an International School. Robin Berting and Sara Sulaimani will share their reflections on the project after its first year based on both concrete data and anecdotes. Participants will also be encouraged to consider how they might remodel admissions interviews and tours at their own schools by looking at them from a fresh new angle.

Speakers

Sara Sulaimani

Admissions Officer, International School of Brussels

Sara is in her 10th year as the Admissions Officer at the International School of Brussels. She attended ISB as a student, then university in the US before starting her career as an Art Producer for a large advertising agency in Los Angeles. She transferred with the agency back to... Read More →

Robin Berting

Admissions Manager, International School of Brussels

Robin Berting has been Admissions Manager at the International School of Brussels since 2014. He had previously worked in schools in Spain, South Korea and Canada - first as a teacher and then in admissions. Robin has presented at admissions conferences and/or has written articles... Read More →

The ISB Experience Room After 1 Year Sara&Robin compressed pdf

Friday March 29, 2019 11:20am - 12:10pm PDT
Library

General

12:10pm PDT

Lunch

Friday March 29, 2019 12:10pm - 1:10pm PDT
American School of Milan

Networking

1:10pm PDT

Workshop 1.1: OpenApply Demonstration

This session will provide a high-level overview of OpenApply to delegates who have not seen the system before. You may be considering adopting OpenApply, or you may simply want to compare how other schools are managing their admissions process using dedicated software. There will be plenty of opportunities to ask questions throughout, as well as the ability to sign up for a 1-2-1 demonstration with Ashley if you would like to learn more in the context of your own school.

Speakers

Ashley Kirk

Regional Sales Manager, EMEA, OpenApply

Friday March 29, 2019 1:10pm - 2:00pm PDT
Breakout Room 1

OpenApply

1:10pm PDT

Workshop 1.2: Insights & Analytics for Admissions and Marketing

Speakers

Greg Sturm

Marketing Manager, OpenApply

Tom Kirby

Senior Implementation Specialist, OpenApply

I am a Senior Implementation Specialist for OpenApply, responsible for OpenApply training and support, and for implementing OpenApply with our new schools in Europe, Middle East and Africa. Feel free to ask me anything about OpenApply!

Milan Insights & Analytics pdf

Friday March 29, 2019 1:10pm - 2:00pm PDT
Breakout Room 2

OpenApply

2:00pm PDT

Short Break

Friday March 29, 2019 2:00pm - 2:10pm PDT
American School of Milan

Networking

2:10pm PDT

Workshop 2.1: When Admissions and Marketing Collide: Optimizing the Admissions Process through Marketing Automation

As digital tools have evolved, so has the need for admissions and marketing to collaborate more closely together. In this session we will discuss the concepts around inbound marketing and how marketing automation improves the admissions process. With Finalsite’s partnership with OpenApply your school’s admissions team can create a seamless and complete online admission funnel that will ultimately lead to higher enrollment with an increase in efficiency and productivity for both your admissions office and prospective families along every step of the process.

Speakers

Debbie Eisenach

International Marketing Manager, Finalsite

American living abroad for many years. Happy to talk: IB - my 3 kids survived, inline skating, Singapore or Berlin, US college admissions, and if you want to talk school websites, marketing and communication, stop by the Finalsite Booth or join my presentation!

When Admissions and Marketing Collide Debbie pdf

Friday March 29, 2019 2:10pm - 3:00pm PDT
Breakout Room 1

OpenApply

2:10pm PDT

Workshop 2.2: Family Friendly Re-Enrolment

Speakers

Tom Kirby

Senior Implementation Specialist, OpenApply

Milan Family Friendly Re Enrolment pdf

Friday March 29, 2019 2:10pm - 3:00pm PDT
Breakout Room 2

OpenApply

3:00pm PDT

Short Break

Friday March 29, 2019 3:00pm - 3:10pm PDT
American School of Milan

Networking

3:10pm PDT

Unconference

Speakers

Jessica Fortin

Admissions Director, International Community School of Addis Ababa

As Admissions Director at the International Community School of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Jess has experienced the excitement and challenges of an ever-changing school. Over her 12 years at ICS, the school has more than doubled in size, as the country develops and the reputation of the... Read More →

Unconference zip

Friday March 29, 2019 3:10pm - 4:10pm PDT
Library

General

4:10pm PDT

Day 1: Transportation to Grand Visconti Palace

Friday March 29, 2019 4:10pm - 4:40pm PDT
American School of Milan

Transportation

6:00pm PDT

Happy Hour at Identità Golose

We are hosting a Happy Hour from 6pm to 8pm at Identità Golose.

You can easily go from the Grand Visconti Palace to Identità Golose by metro line 3 from Lodi T.i.b.b. station to Montenapoleone station. The whole trip should take around 15 minutes. Please meet up with us there at 6pm!

See map with directions attached.

Route from hotel to happy hour png

Friday March 29, 2019 6:00pm - 8:00pm PDT
IDENTITA' GOLOSE Via Romagnosi, 3, 20121 Milano MI, Italy

Networking

8:00am PDT

Day 2: Transportation from Grand Visconti Palace to American School of Milan

Saturday March 30, 2019 8:00am - 8:30am PDT
Grand Visconti Palace

Transportation

8:30am PDT

Morning Tea & Registration

Saturday March 30, 2019 8:30am - 8:45am PDT
Library

Networking

8:45am PDT

Company Update, Product Roadmap & New Features

Speakers

MacKenzie Murray

Senior VP, Systems, OpenApply

Milan Company Update pdf

Saturday March 30, 2019 8:45am - 9:15am PDT
Library

OpenApply

9:15am PDT

ASM & OpenApply

Speakers

Sara Griffith

Director of Admissions and Advancement, American School of Milan

Sara Griffith is responsible for admissions at ASM and joined ASM at the start of the 2011/12 academic year. She grew up in the Boston area but now calls Milan her home. She received a Masters of International Business Studies from the University of South Carolina, Columbia and holds... Read More →

Saturday March 30, 2019 9:15am - 9:45am PDT
Library

General

9:45am PDT

Short Break

Saturday March 30, 2019 9:45am - 9:55am PDT
Library

Networking

9:55am PDT

Admissions Experience & Data Privacy/Protection

Speakers

Miguel Martinez Hernando

Admissions Coordinator / Data Protection Officer, Benjamin Franklin International School

Currently working as Admissions Coordinator at Benjamin Franklin International School (BFIS), considered one of the best international schools in Spain offering American education and the IBDP to students from over 51 different nationalities. Besides my job at BFIS, I'm also an Attorney... Read More →

Admissions Experience and Data Protection Miguel pdf

Saturday March 30, 2019 9:55am - 10:45am PDT
Library

General

10:45am PDT

Coffee Break

Saturday March 30, 2019 10:45am - 11:00am PDT
Library

Networking

11:00am PDT

Factors Affecting Enrolment Growth

Speakers

Claudine Hakim

Head of Admissions & Transitions, International School of London

Claudine Hakim is Head of Admissions, Transitions and External Relations at the International School of London (ISL) UK schools. She was the founding Head of Secondary at ISL Surrey and leader of the award winning Crossroads Transitions programme. Claudine also leads the Student Support... Read More →

Factors Affecting Enrolment Growth Claudine pdf

Saturday March 30, 2019 11:00am - 11:50am PDT
Library

General

11:50am PDT

Lunch & School Tour

Saturday March 30, 2019 11:50am - 1:10pm PDT
American School of Milan

Networking

1:10pm PDT

Workshop 3.1: OpenApply Spring Features

Get a sneak peek into the exciting new features OpenApply currently has in the works for this spring. Learn about new tools for agents, updates to events, and more!

Speakers