About Us
Jeff Marsee, Ph.D., President of Finish-in-Four, obtained his Bachelor’s degree from the University of Southern California (economics), Master’s degree from California State University @ Long Beach (economics) and Doctorate of Philosophy from The University of Texas @ Austin, Texas. His dissertation topic validated that shifting funding to certain high impact areas at colleges can improve graduation rates.
Jeff has a unique professional background as a former Vice President of Administrative Services, Academic Provost, and college president at nonprofit and for-profit colleges in California, New York and Texas. At the beginning of the millennium, he established a college and nonprofit organization management consulting practice that specialized in reengineering processes; integrating strategic plans with budgets; creating recruitment programs that increased student enrollment; and implementing successful student retention plans. As a recently retired college president, Dr. Marsee has reactivated his consulting practice. Finish-in-Four and will work with colleges that are interested in improving student retention and graduation rates while also attempting to hold tuition increases in check.
implemented retention practices that improved first-year student retention rates (Western Carolina University, NC; Winston-Salem University, NC; SUNY Maritime, NY; UMass Lowell; Fayetteville State University, NC), ;
established One-Stop Student Centers (UMass Dartmouth; Fayetteville State University, NC;
Northern Michigan University);
developed recruitment strategies that improved freshman enrollment at several colleges by
38% (Fayetteville State University) to 72% (Cheyney University-PA);
converted weekend and evening courses at a Historically Black University into six degree
granting programs (Fayetteville State University);
reorganized administrative processes for student support and student-life programs (Loyola
University, Chicago);
facilitated the strategic planning processes for anticipated institutional transitions(CSU—Northridge; University of Texas, Dallas; Arizona State University; Hadassah Women’s Organization, NY; Council of Churches, NY);
developed and administered corporate change management programs (Oracle Corporation and iXL Web Development, Inc.);
facilitated at leadership and team building seminars (5,000+ participants at colleges and universities and professional organizations such as the University of Arizona, East Carolina University; College Business Management Institute (University of Kentucky, Lexington); and Western Association of College Business Managers (UC Santa Barbara); and
implemented “instruction first” budget development models that resulted in higher faculty productivity and more efficient utilization of resources (Loyola University, Chicago)
Major higher education clients included:
Arizona State University; Cheyney University; Compton College; CSU, Northridge; East Carolina University; Fayetteville State University; Louisville University; Loyola University, Chicago; Northern Michigan University; St. Mary’s College; SUNY Maritime College; University of Cincinnati; University of Massachusetts, Boston; University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth; University of Massachusetts, Lowell; University of Texas, Dallas; Western Carolina University;
and Winston-Salem University.
Corporate and non-profit clients that implemented change-management initiatives included: Hadassah, iXL Web Development Company and the Oracle Corporation.