'Students First': Fayetteville State University Brings Home National Ellucian Award APRIL 24, 2025
FAYETTEVILLE, NC – Winning the Ellucian Impact Award for Fayetteville State University is not so much about the prestige or even being recognized nationally among institutions of higher learning.
It's about knowing that FSU students who thought they might have no hope of attending college because of financial hardship will now go on to complete their degrees, creating better futures for themselves and their families. It's about achieving dreams.
FSU's Dr. Pamela Baldwin and Vincent Harris Jr. will tell you as much, crediting their team of dedicated professionals and technology giant Ellucian for making it all possible. Baldwin and Harris accepted the annual award and a $25,000 prize for the University from company President and Chief Executive Officer Laura Ipsen. The presentation occurred on April 9 at the Ellucian Live Technology Conference in Orlando, Florida.
Awards were given in four categories. Fayetteville State won the coveted "Students First" category for its stellar results in communicating and outreach to students seeking scholarships and other financial aid.
"It's fulfilling to be acknowledged for the work that you know is most impactful for students," said Dr. Baldwin, Vice Chancellor for Strategic Enrollment and Student Success. It's vital, she added, to stay true to the mission of ensuring more Broncos "graduate in four years or less with as little debt as possible."
"I'm really proud of the team for continuing to meet students where they are – and spreading knowledge about the financial aid and scholarship process," said Harris, MBA and Executive Director of Scholarships and Financial Aid. He and Baldwin offer a special thanks to Heather Adner, the Associate Director of Scholarships and Financial Aid, for her leadership, work in utilizing the Ellucian software, and help telling the University's compelling success story in their nomination for the award.
What is Ellucian – and the Ellucian Impact Award?
Based in Reston, Virginia, just outside of Washington, D.C., Ellucian is a software and technology tools provider for higher education, partnering with over 2,900 customers across 50 countries and serving 20 million students. "Ellucian's AI-powered platform, trained on the richest dataset available in higher education, drives efficiency, personalized experiences, and strengthened engagement for students, faculty, and staff," according to a company press release.
The FSU's Scholarships & Financial Aid office team crafted a narrative that outlined their impressive results using Ellucian. In short, they had gone from a slow paper system to speedy, high-tech efficiency.
The University, their submission pointed out, went beyond standard student award emails by adding enrollment resources and ensuring adherence to College Cost Transparency Initiative standards. In just three months, FSU achieved a 62 percent (email) open rate for the 2025 aid year, logged 493 uses of the net price calculator, and handled 462 Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) appeals, which contributed to a deeper understanding of prospective students' needs and interests.
With Ellucian, FSU streamlined its operations, enhanced data accuracy, and improved communication with students, issuing 2,948 aid letters as of November 2024. This integration fostered better faculty engagement, improving enrollment, retention, and completion rates.
"What Fayetteville State University has achieved is truly inspiring, and we are proud to recognize them as a 2025 Ellucian Impact Award Winner," said Laura Ipsen, Ellucian's President/CEO. "By taking a thoughtful, student-first approach to financial aid and leveraging Ellucian solutions, FSU made the process clearer and more transparent. Their results – a 62 percent open rate and nearly 500 uses of their net price calculator – show how technology can open doors and drive real impact."