Slatest News: September 2023
Updates & Enhancements
Dispatches from Slate Feedback
Check out the latest from Slate Feedback—our Product Management team has been actively soliciting your thoughts for new ideas and posting updates about existing and completed features. Here are a few of our favorite updates from the last few weeks:
Last week at Technolutions: September Updates
Curious about recent updates to Slate? In addition to new feature updates, we're also publishing tweaks and bug fixes via our new periodic posting, "Last Week at Technolutions." Follow our Product Management channel in the Community Forums for info on the latest publishes to Test and Production environments including the recent updates from September 4 and September 11.New Keyboard Shortcuts in Reader
Existing tools in Slate continue to be enhanced with new keyboard shortcuts in Reader. The 'D' key enables the drag functionality, and the 'T' key enables text selection.Mail Merge in Deliver
Mail Merge has moved to Deliver! Set up a mail merge just like an email campaign by using the new mailing method of "Mail Merge." Once "Approved" in Outbox, the data will be merged and the document will be ready to print. This data will then be added to the record Timeline.New GMAT Score Source Format
If you import GMAT Scores from the Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC), a new source format is now available: GMAT Score Data File (CSV 2023). The source format is effective 9/25/2023; learn more in the Slate Knowledge Base.
Summit Central
Registration Opening Soon
Registration for Slate Summit 2024 is fast approaching. Held at Chicago's Navy Pier, June 19-21, 2024, this in-person conference will feature keynotes, concurrent sessions, networking, entertainment, an epic dance party, and so much more—exclusively for the Slate community.
Call for Proposals
Our annual Call for Proposals for content to be featured at Slate Summit 2024 is right around the corner! Give back to the Slate community by sharing your team's successes, and connect with other Slate users during the Slate Summit. The Call for Proposals will be opening soon.
The More You Know
Virtual Conversations: Slate Presents
Learn how Slate Platinum Preferred Partners can help you achieve your goals in the Slate Presents webinar series "Dive Deeper with Slate Preferred Partners," starting September 28 through the end of November. All sessions begin at 2:00 pm ET. Join us in the next few weeks for:
Thursday, September 28
enrollmenFUEL: Magnifi-Slate: Small Touches to Make Your Instance Beautiful
Tuesday, October 3
Slate Print by MitteraEDU: Slate Print: Effective Print on a Budget
Thursday, October 5
Tuesday, October 10
Net Natives: Seamless Success: Leveraging an Omnichannel Marketing Approach in Slate to Maximize Your ROI
Thursday, October 12
Waybetter Marketing: Allow Your Counselors to Work Smarter, Not Harder (with Slate!)
Thursday, October 26
Human Capital Research Corporation: Dive Deeper with Human Capital Research Corporation
Tuesday, October 31
Visit the Slate Presents portal in your Home Slate to watch any of our previous Slate Presents webinars and to register for these Community Conversations.
Community Conversations
Join Technolutions staff and members of the Slate community for regularly scheduled, discussion-based sessions on specific topics. These calls are available to all, so come learn from the broad knowledge of the Slate community—including the expertise of Technolutions staff and the experiences of your colleagues at other institutions.
To view the complete schedule, register for Community Conversations, and submit questions in advance, visit the Community Conversations portal, accessible from your Home Slate or via Database >> Community Conversations. Join us the next few weeks for:
Tuesday, September 26
4:00 pm ET: Ask Us Anything: Communications
Wednesday, September 27
1:00 pm ET: Ask Us Anything: Application & Reader
Thursday, September 28
2:00 pm ET: Getting Started with Student Success
4:00 pm ET: Configurable Joins: The Basics
Monday, October 2
2:00 pm ET: Welcome to Slate (Admissions & Enrollment, Student Success, Advancement)
Tuesday, October 3
1:00 pm ET: Reporting with Configurable Joins
2:00 pm ET: Implementing Advancement: Ask Us Anything!
Wednesday, October 4
1:00 pm ET: Document Export Queries
4:00 pm ET: Implementing Advancement: Ask Us Anything!
4:00 pm ET: Collecting Data in the Reader
Thursday, October 5
1:00 pm ET: Importing Event Registrations
2:00 pm ET: Advancement: Ask Us Anything!
2:00 pm ET: Getting Started with Student Success
Slate on Tour
Get the full #SlateOnTour experience with Technolutions staff at these upcoming conferences. Come say hello—and tell your Slate (and future Slate!) colleagues, too.
Association of Advancement Services Professionals, Chicago, September 27-29: Join us in the Windy City at the Hilton Chicago for the Association of Advancement Services Professionals (AASP) Conference.
NACADA Annual Conference, Orlando, October 4-7: If you happen to be in the Orlando area, swing by the Rosen Shingle Creek to learn more about Slate for Student Success!
EDUCAUSE Annual Conference, Chicago, October 9-12: We'll be at the McCormick Place for this year's EDUCAUSE Conference. Stop by and visit us at Booth #1133!
AACRAO SEM Annual Conference, Seattle, November 5-8: If you're headed to Seattle, come see us at Booth #201 in the Hyatt Regency.
Slate Preferred Partners
RHB Academy
RHB is excited to share a professional development opportunity for Slate users and enrollment management leaders. On November 16-17, at Claremont McKenna College, RHB will host Unlocking Potential with Slate, a two-day training event focused on record and data management techniques and strategies using configurable joins, portals, and more.
Day one will be a full-day, instructional workshop featuring hands-on lessons centered around configurable joins and portals. Day two will be a half-day seminar for enrollment leaders that provides structure and strategies to help you organize your institution's communications, data and support systems so your new students can arrive ready to thrive. You can lean more and register online here.
Slate Print: What You're Doing Right Now
The Slate Community loves Slate Print and we can see why! The ability to personalize quality print pieces and print them directly from Slate can change the game not only for Admissions, but also for Student Success and Advancement. Here are just a few statistics to date in 2023:
30 million print pieces mailed
365 colleges and universities using Slate Print
5,000+ unique print templates uploaded
80 Slate Print products and virtually unlimited custom projects
Variable QR codes are being widely used to combine print products with the ease and accuracy of pre-populated event, inquiry and other forms. You can include static and variable QR codes to all digital/print options in Slate Print at no extra cost.
Drip Print increases the reach of your drip marketing communications plans in Slate by inserting postcards, folded mailers, viewbooks, admitted student packets, and more. Set them up and then let them run!
Segmented Print provides personalization at the click of a button, allowing you to create unique printings for different populations that will speak to what they want to know.
Spotlight on the Slate Community
Back to School Shopping
Looking for the best way to celebrate the start of another school year? Check out all our Slate swag in the Slate Spirit Shop. We've got notebooks, water bottles, T-shirts, sharks, and so much more! Keep an eye out for some new items coming soon!
Falling for You
It's the season of pumpkin spice! Get your cozy flannel shirt on and enjoy this a-maizing playlist.
Get To Know…
Thomas Miskimins, Learning Experience Designer
What book would you recommend? and why?
The Gift by Lewis Hyde. This book is packed with interesting history as well as challenging ideas about how we view the nature of giving and its relation to an artist's work. It's well worth the read for artists and non-artists alike.
What's the weirdest food you've ever eaten?
A peanut-butter and mayonnaise sandwich. It's certainly not my typical meal, but don't knock it till you've tried it.
What fictional family would you be a member of?
The vampires from What We Do in the Shadows. While there's definitely a risk of ending up perpetually hypnotized or worse, I'm willing to bet that joining their crazy adventures would be worth it.
What would you be doing if you weren't at the office?
Photography, hiking, chasing wildlife, basically whatever gets me out in nature at some odd hour. If the weather doesn't comply, then relaxing with my wife or trying to be good at videogames from years ago (currently re-living Rocket League and Team Fortress 2).