Gray Associates Expands Partnerships and Facilitated Data-Informed Decision Making for a Record Number of Colleges and Universities in 2019

CONCORD, Mass., Jan. 8, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Gray Associates is reflecting on a banner year in 2019 thanks to dozens of colleges and universities who chose Gray's data, systems, and people to help them make better-informed academic program decisions.  As a result, Gray grew 37% in 2019 and is preparing for another record-breaking year in 2020. 

In the last year, Gray's systems were used by more than 100 institutions that enroll a total of over 1.5 million students.  The company brought on 89 new Clients in 2019, including community colleges, state colleges and universities, private not-for-profit institutions and religiously-affiliated institutions across the country. 

Most clients use Gray's Program Evaluation System (PES).  PES integrates critical market data on educational programs at a local, regional, and national level.  PES collects and transforms data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, job postings, Google Searches, and IPEDS completions so clients can score and rank over 1,000 programs and decide which programs to Start, Stop, Sustain or Grow. 

In 2019, Gray's new Program Economics Platform (PEP) took off.  Clients embrace the system for its simplicity and the light it sheds on program margins.  With this information, colleges are better able to identify high-margin programs to grow and opportunities to improve margins in less-productive programs.  PEP also makes it easier for institutions to identify efficiency opportunities by assessing course-level costs and margins. 

Robert Atkins, CEO and Founder of Gray Associates said, "Since our inception over a decade ago, we have been proud to collaborate with schools across the country to leverage the power of data to determine how to grow program enrollment and increase program margins.  This combination of revenue and margin growth generates money that many schools need to invest in mission-critical work."

At the recent SACSCOC conference in December 2019, Scott Davis of Mercer University in Georgia said, "We conducted a complete review of our academic portfolio with Gray and were pleasantly surprised with the collaborative experience Gray led us through where our faculty input was central to the process.  We found 41 programs with untapped academic growth potential that we could benefit from expanding. And, we also discovered areas where we could improve enrollment management practices to more effectively recruit and retain students…. Working with Gray was extremely valuable and the work will continue to support our overall growth and success in future years."

In 2019, Gray also expanded its partnerships with leaders in the higher-education sector.  These relationships now include BKD CPAs & Advisors, Jenzabar, and collaboration with recognized expert and author, William F. Massy, whose new book, Resource Management for Colleges and Universities will be coming out in April. 

Robert Atkins added, "I am delighted to announce that Peter Starrett and Zach Paz have been promoted to Partner.  Pete and Zach are the backbone of the firm; their hard work, creativity, and loyalty have been vital to our success. They are now focused on upgrading our data, systems, and analyses for you—keep an eye out for these enhanced capabilities early in the new year."

About Gray Associates 

Gray helps colleges and universities make data-informed decisions about their academic programs. Gray's software integrates the best-available data on student demand, employer needs, and competitive intensity for the precise market served by each institution.  Faculty and administrative leaders use the software to score, rank, and evaluate programs in a collaborative process that builds consensus on programs to start, sunset, sustain, or grow.  With Gray's tools and processes, institutions identify paths to increase enrollment, revenue, and efficiency, while investing in their mission and strengthening relationships among faculty and administrators.

Press Contact:
Jackie Lucas
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SOURCE Gray Associates