MSCHE Pillars of Change

The Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE) continues to promote student-centered accreditation through its Pillars of Change Podcast. In this episode, two students reflect on presenting their accreditation-related research to 1,500 higher education leaders at the Commission's 2025 Annual Conference Student Poster Presentations. 

In the 13th episode of the Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE) Pillars of Change Podcast , Commissioner Kimberly Davenport , Partner and Director of Corporate Responsibility with ScottMadden, Inc., hosted Aurora Sharrard , inaugural Assistant Vice Chancellor for Sustainability at the University of Pittsburgh (PA).  The two discussed how the University of Pittsburgh integrates dive...

In the 12th episode of the Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE) Pillars of Change Podcast , Commissioner Susan Looney , President of Reading Area Community College, hosted DeAnna Burt-Nanna , President of Monroe Community College (MCC) in New York.  The two discussed MCC’s initiatives to support student parent learners. MCC is one of four U.S. community colleges collaborating with...

In the 11th episode of the Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE) Pillars of Change Podcast , Commissioner Havidán Rodríguez , President of SUNY at Albany, hosted John B. King, Jr. , Chancellor of The State University of New York (SUNY) and former U.S. Secretary of Education within President Barack Obama's cabinet. The two discussed the role of higher education in promoting Dive...

In the 10th episode of the Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE) Pillars of Change Podcast , Davie Gilmour, Chair of the Commission, hosted three students who presented Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) research at the MSCHE 2023 Annual Conference .  Davie was joined by Sahtrese McQueen, an undergraduate student at Pace University (NY), whose research analyzed controversial top...

In this episode of the Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE) Pillars of Change Podcast, Dr. Valerie D. Lehr, Commissioner and Professor of Gender Studies/Government, St. Lawrence University (NY), engages with leaders from the East Stroudsburg University (PA) Career and Independent Living and Learning Studies (CILLS) program. Dean of the College of Education, Dr. Brooke Langan; CILLS...

In this episode of the MSCHE Pillars of Change Podcast, Dr. Félix Matos Rodríguez , Chancellor of The City University of New York (CUNY) System, engages with Dr. David Rehm , Commissioner and Vice President of Academic Affairs at Misericordia University in Dallas, Pennsylvania, about the system efforts to eliminate remedial courses in math and English and replace them with corequisite, credit-bear...

Dr. Havidán Rodríguez has a long and distinguished career in higher education and has been guiding SUNY at Albany (UAlbany) since 2017, accelerating UAlbany's success toward reaching its vision to be the nation's leading diverse public research university. However, Dr. Rodríguez's impact extends beyond UAlbany. In this episode of the MSCHE Pillars of Change Podcast, Dr. Jim Sunser,...

For the past three decades, University of Maryland, Baltimore County has become synonymous with Dr. Freeman A. Hrabowski, III. He is nationally celebrated for his results-driven commitment to inclusive excellence, collaborative approach to leadership, and mentorship that pairs high expectations with strong support. In this episode of the MSCHE Pillars of Change Podcast, Dr. Katherine Conway-Turner...

Since being named president of Union County College in 2010, Dr. Margaret McMenamin has aggressively pursued an agenda centering on improving student success outcomes. During her tenure at Union, the College has more than quintupled its IPEDS graduation rate and been recognized by the Aspen Institute for Community College Excellence and Association of Community College Trustees. MSCHE Commissioner...

In this wide-ranging interview, Lloyd Ricketts, Vice President and Treasurer at the College of New Jersey as well as Treasurer of the Commission and a member of the Executive Committee speaks with Dr. Aminta  Breaux who serves as the 10th president of Bowie State. At Bowie State, the oldest historically Black university in Maryland, Dr. Breaux is committed to ensuring that every student develops a...

Dr. Katherine S. Conway-Turner, President of SUNY Buffalo State and a member of the Middles States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE) Executive Committee, sits in the interview chair for this edition of the MSCHE Pillars of Change podcast. Dr. Conway-Turner, who was interviewed in the inaugural podcast, speaks with  Pat McGuire, president of Trinity Washington University. Their conversation ab...

Middle States Commission on Higher Education Executive Committee member Dr. Carl Person welcomes Dr. Wayne Frederick,  President of Howard University, to the MSCHE's Pillars of Change podcast for an engaging and wide-ranging conversation about diversity, equity, and inclusion issues.

In the inaugural episode of MSCHE's Pillars of Change,  Dr. Davie Gilmour , President of Pennsylvania College of Technology and Vice-Chair of the Middle States Commission on Higher Education interviews Dr. Katherine Conway-Turner , President of SUNY Buffalo State, who also serves as an MSCHE Executive Committee member.