From Freshmen to Founders: Michigan Students Take on Higher Ed’s Summer Melt Crisis with MeetYourClass

A growing number of colleges are struggling to convert applicants into enrolled students—and to keep them engaged through graduation. With Gen Z students relying heavily on familiar digital platforms like Instagram and Discord for social interaction, traditional college tools for orientation, enrollment, and community-building often miss the mark. According to research, between 10 to 40 percent of students who accept offers at four-year institutions fail to show up in the fall—a phenomenon known as “summer melt.” The stakes are high: universities lose millions annually from melted admits, and students lose momentum toward degrees.

So, what if the solution to improving student yield, engagement, and retention isn’t another third-party platform, but the apps students are already using?

On this episode of DisruptED, guest host Darin Francis, CEO of Harbinger Lane, speaks with Jonah Liss, COO and Co-Founder of MeetYourClass, a student engagement platform born out of Instagram class groups. Broadcasting from ASU+GSV, they discuss how this student-first innovation is helping colleges tap into the social habits of digital natives to drive enrollment outcomes.

Key moments in the episode…

• The student-led origin of MeetYourClass: How Liss and his co-founders evolved a social media hobby into a yield-boosting platform used by 19 universities—with zero marketing spend.

• Why traditional platforms fail: Students often ditch school-provided roommate finders and portals in favor of social apps they’ve used since middle school, contributing to disengagement and summer melt.

• What’s next for MeetYourClass: Plans to integrate housing, events, and student life into a CRM-like platform that starts engaging students well before they apply.

Jonah Liss is the COO and Co-Founder of MeetYourClass, a higher ed SaaS platform that leverages social media to increase student yield and reduce summer melt in university campuses. He has led the company’s growth to over 500,000 users and partnerships with top institutions, earning recognition from Forbes 30 Under 30 and Techstars. With a background in tech, product development, and early-stage entrepreneurship, Liss has also founded a COVID-19 support platform and held roles in investment banking and data science.

Article written by MarketScale.