WSJ backfires on NAU?

Seeking to reverse five years of declining enrollment, Northern Arizona University (NAU) contracted with educational institution image meisters Lipman Hearne. The LH campaign rolled out in 2006. NAU got a new logo, a new web page and series of print ads. Lipman Hearne got several awards, including a 2006 Best of Show from the Admissions Marketing Report.

In the last month or so, NAU has been peppering half-pages ads through various print editions of the Wall Street Journal. One ad in particular caught my eye:
As a college recruiter, I'm not impressed by this series. Many thing bug me about these ads. I'm sure that Sunday Hannan (above) is probably a nice person, but the fact that NAU has her appearing in a national ad wearing shower thongs doesn't impress me. From reviewing the series, I must say that it doesn't appear that NAU attracts the type of student that I want to hire.

I sincerely hope that NAU can attract more students. However, because of these ads, Northern Arizona University is off my list of targeted schools for this year's college recruiting season.