Aug 21 2025
How Montcalm Community College Gets Higher-Than-Average Reply Rates With Coach-Led Texting
Scaling Engagement Across Departments with Mongoose
TL;DR
When admissions texts from a CRM, student services sends email, and advancement mails postcards, students get overlapping messages and staff repeat each other’s work. These six institutions put multiple departments on one engagement platform with shared inboxes, segmentation, and reporting. The results include an 84% enrollment increase at Notre Dame’s online data science program, an 8.7% enrollment lift at McLennan, and a threefold jump in TRIO campaign results at Lake Land.
- 6 institutions, one platform
- 84% enrollment growth at Notre Dame
- 28 teams on Mongoose at McLennan
- TRIO results tripled at Lake Land
Download the Full Case Study
Admissions texts from a CRM, student services sends email, and advancement relies on mailers. When every office uses its own tool, students get overlapping messages from teams that can’t see each other’s outreach, and staff end up duplicating work.
The institutions below took a different route. They put multiple departments on Mongoose’s AI Engagement Platform, with shared inboxes, segmentation, and reporting, so teams can coordinate outreach across the whole student journey. Here’s how each one does it.
Dutchess Community College
Teams: Admissions, advising, student financial services, student activities
Dutchess, a SUNY community college in New York’s Hudson Valley, gave four core teams one shared platform. Admissions texting volume rose 133% while opt-outs went down, and weekly event reminders, financial deadline nudges, and admissions follow-ups now work together instead of competing.
“Mongoose helps us create a spider web of support. We’re reaching students with empathy and relevance, not just information.“
Brian Sondey, Associate VP for Enrollment and Student Success at Dutchess community college
McLennan Community College
Teams: 28, including admissions, advising, financial aid, student success, and Title IX
McLennan built a campus-wide communication strategy on Mongoose, connected to Slate and Colleague. Its One Stop Shop reached more than 8,000 students in a year, Web Chat handles routine questions, and the college saw an 8.7% enrollment lift.
“Mongoose is a critical part of our communication strategy. It’s flexible, easy to use, and the support we receive is top-notch. We’ve seen real results.“
Dustie Hamilton, Director of Enrollment Systems at MCLENNAN COMMUNITY COLLEGE
Montcalm Community College
Teams: Student success, advising, financial aid, events
Montcalm’s success coaches use Mongoose for everything from financial aid and registration help to weekly check-ins and campus events. Shared inboxes and weekly messaging themes keep communication consistent, even for part-time staff.
“Mongoose makes communication feel personal. That’s what makes it so effective.“
Lisa Gardner, Director of Student Success and Advising at Montcalm COMMUNITY COLLEGE
University of Notre Dame: Online Master’s in Data Science
Teams: Admissions, student success, alumni relations
A two-person team swapped long, ignored emails for short, personal texts. Enrollment grew 84% in two years, from 25 students to 46, and the team now uses the same approach for current students and alumni.
“Now that we’ve mastered texting for admissions, we’re scaling it for student success and alumni. Our alumni are some of our best recruiters; if we can engage them meaningfully, that impacts admissions too.”
Samantha Adamczewski, Associate Director of the Online Master’s in Data Science program at university of Notre Dame
Lake Land College
Teams: TRIO, adult education, financial aid, student communications
Lake Land uses segmented, multilingual texts in Haitian Creole, French, and Spanish. In its TRIO program, results tripled from 2% to 6% once the team added Smart Messages and tailored outreach. Financial aid uses texts to get award details and deadlines to scholarship recipients quickly.
“Instead of just sending out information, we’re able to engage students in real conversations. This capability is invaluable for building trust and connection.”
Peighton Hinote, Coordinator for Student Communication and Initiatives at Lake Land COLLEGE
Gateway Technical College
Teams: Recruitment, advising, financial aid, registrar, student support
Gateway has texted students for more than six years, with shared inboxes and segmentation coordinating outreach across departments. The college found a clear link between two-way conversations and enrollment: students who engaged by text were more likely to take the next step and enroll.
“Texting feels easier and more informal for both students and staff. It’s the tool nobody complains about.”
Amanda Robillard, CRM Technology Manager at Gateway TECHNICAL COLLEGE
“Mongoose has helped us close communication gaps that used to cost us enrollments. Now it’s helping us bring students across the finish line.”
Carrie Parworth, Executive Director, Student Affairs, Gateway Technical College
Why it works across campus
- Shared inboxes and automation. Every team can see the conversation, so follow-up is faster and nobody doubles up.
- Smart segmentation. Nudges based on where a student is in their journey or what they need.
- AI insights and dashboards. Spot trends and the students who need help.
- Text, Web Chat, and WhatsApp. Reach students on the channel they use, any time of day.
- Connectors to your CRM and SIS. Including Slate, Banner, Salesforce, and Colleague.
One shared platform also means fewer point solutions to buy, manage, and train staff on.
Download the Full Case Study
For a two-page summary of all six institutions to share with your team, download the campus-wide engagement case study (PDF).
Want to see what one platform could do across your campus? Book a demo.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why use one engagement platform across departments?
Which colleges use Mongoose across multiple departments?
What results have these institutions seen?
Won’t more departments texting mean more opt-outs?
Does Mongoose connect to our CRM and SIS?
Can Mongoose support multilingual outreach?
