Valdosta State University Admissions Director Walter Peacock will no longer be with the school after this spring semester.  

 He has accepted a position to become the University of West Alabama’s director of Admissions and Enrollment Management, after working at the university for 25 years.

 Peacock, who also attended VSU in the 1970s, has worked in admissions since 1977 and became Director of Admissions in 1986.

 “I remember when VSU first started sending out VHS tapes to students who sent their SAT scores here,” Peacock said about the changes in technology that have occurred since he has been director.  “That’s how long I’ve been here.”

 Peacock is looking forward to the challenges of helping West Alabama with their enrollment management.

 He explained that although the jobs are similar, he has done as much as he can do here professionally at VSU and that West Alabama offers a new challenge.

 “I will be able to do a lot more on the enrollment management side than I could do here, so it will be a challenge and will be interesting,” Peacock said.

 “They need some help at West Alabama.”

 Peacock also spoke of retention rates here at VSU and how they should be higher.

 “We haven’t done a lot with retention rates here on this campus,” Peacock said.

  “I think the retention rates here could be higher and I don’t think we’ve ever really paid attention to retention and how it could be.”

 His former position at VSU will be expanded and renamed assistant vice president for enrollment management.

 During the SGA meeting on April 4, SGA President DeMario Jones discussed the expansion of the position and how it would better market VSU to students across Georgia via social network and other forums now that some two-year community colleges are offering four year programs.

 “I believe it will be hard to replace Mr. Walter Peacock and want to thank him on behalf of all the students for all his service to the university,” Jones said.  “The creation of this new position, I believe, is just what the university needs because we are a growing university and most other bigger schools have an enrollment management department that combines admissions, financial aid, etc., so I believe this is yet another positive move on the universities part to enhance the overall experience at VSU.”

 Peacock stated that as admissions director, he was always a part of marketing VSU on an everyday basis.

 “We’ve done marketing for the school and advertisement in the past,” Peacock said. “The school has put much emphasis on outside advertising that past few years and I never had a title or direct responsibility for that, but that’s nothing new for me.”

 Peacock has no say in who becomes the new assistant vice president for enrollment Mmnagement.

 “I would gladly help the new assistant vice president for Enrollment Management in anyway shape, form or fashion,” he said.

 In regards to the West Alabama-VSU rivalry in football, Peacock is steadfast to “sit down and keep his mouth shut,” when the teams play. He has only missed one home football game since VSU began playing in 1981.

 “I owe a lot to VSU,” Peacock said. “I’ve been working here since I was 23 years old.”