The Connection Crisis: How AI Is Reshaping Student Engagement with Jenny Petty

The Weekly VineDown with Emily Smith

Higher education marketing has reached a crossroads, and Jenny Petty knows it well. In her second appearance on *The VineDown*, Jenny, VP of Marketing Communications at the University of Montana, dives into the “perfect storm” facing higher ed—a series of shifts reshaping how colleges recruit, engage, and retain students. From demographic changes to consumer expectations, Jenny unpacks what these challenges mean for today’s enrollment teams and how they can prepare for what’s next. Jenny shares the balance we all have to maintain: between adapting to massive change and staying true to what makes an institution genuine. So, what are the biggest challenges? And more importantly, how do we tackle them? Let’s dig in.