Date of Award
8-2025
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Education (EdD)
Department
Education and Organizational Leadership Development
Committee Chair/Advisor
Carlos Sandoval Jr
Committee Member
Brandi Nicole Hinnant-Crawford
Committee Member
Noelle A. Paufler
Committee Member
Barbara Nesbitt
Abstract
This study examines the impact of marketing and outreach strategies on enhancing family awareness and increasing enrollment in a Dual-Language Mandarin Immersion (DLMI) program in South Carolina. The history of bilingual education has shown an increased interest in recent decades. At the same time, Mandarin immersion programs continue to face challenges and under-enrollment. This study employs a mixed-methods design to collect data from surveys and interviews with parents of children entering kindergarten. The data collection also includes interviews with Mandarin Immersion teachers and attending community events. The purpose is to identify effective practices and ongoing barriers to enrollment. Informed by this data, the study developed and implemented a locally tailored enrollment management plan grounded in the principles of improvement science.
The interventions designed in the study are to raise awareness among parents and the community. These interventions highlight targeted marketing and outreach strategies through a strategic enrollment management (SEM) plan. The aim was to increase student enrollment by 35%. And to promote equitable access to the program. Doing this can support the program in the long term. The barriers include concerns about learning difficulties and a lack of parental awareness. Implemented through the lens of improvement science, the findings indicate that utilizing marketing and outreach can significantly increase enrollment by 22% by the end of the study. There are still some limitations and areas for improvement in the research. However, it offers valuable knowledge and implications for educators, researchers, and school districts working to strengthen bilingual, multilingual, and world language education.
Recommended Citation
Zhang, Na, "Increasing Student Enrollment in the Dual-Language Mandarin Immersion Program: Leveraging Marketing and Outreach within a Strategic Enrollment Management Framework" (2025). All Dissertations. 4008.
https://open.clemson.edu/all_dissertations/4008