Changing Higher Ed

This podcast explores fundraising in the time of COVID-19. Contrary to what many would think, the current situation could be an important time to visit with donors. During his 24 years of professional fundraising, Martin Leifeld and his teams raised a staggering $500 million dollars. He served as vice chancellor of advancement for the University of Missouri-St. Louis for a decade. While there, he...

The current pandemic is offering a wealth of learning for higher education. By taking that approach, institutions can better position themselves to survive through the challenges that will continue to ripple through the nation. This podcast features Rob Hartman, who is the chief financial officer of Columbia International University (CIU) in Columbia, S.C. Taking a Learning Perspective There are s...

  Dr. Cathy Trower offers insights in the board's role during a major crisis, such as the current pandemic. She discusses the importance of a partnership between the president and board chair as well as the communication channels that need to be created in a time of crisis.   The   president of Trower   &   Trower   has more than two decades of experiencing providing governance consulting to colle...

Christian higher education is facing numerous challenges. The Association for Biblical Higher Education (ABHE) conducted a study in collaboration with the Barna Group in 2017 that focused on the marketplace, the dynamics facing member institutions as well as the perceptions of Christian higher education. The study identified a number of actions that Christian higher education institutions need to...

Higher education already was  facing major challenges, but an unprecedented black swan event – the COVID-19 pandemic—is testing the resiliency of colleges and universities across the country.  Long-time education leader Dr. E. Gordon Gee offers the wisdom he has gained from serving as a university president for 40 years. Dr. Gee believes that serving in this role is one of the most important calli...

Higher education traditionally does not move quickly when it comes to innovation. However, the current situation with the COVID-19 pandemic is forcing higher education institutions to do just that. Which is where the University Innovation Alliance (UIA) comes in. UIA, which is led by Dr. Bridget Burns, is a group of 11 universities that are committed to innovating together, scaling up what works a...

Palo Alto University (PAU) has faced several crises over the past few years that ended up serving the institution well in dealing the COVID-19 pandemic. Dr. Risa Dickson, the university's interim vice president for academic affairs, said the institution is committed to putting the students first, followed by the faculty in order to move through this crisis. The institution is located in Santa Clar...

  Crises offer many common lessons once they are over. That's the case now as higher education faces the latest crises, the COVID19 pandemic.   This  episode of  Changing Higher Ed  features Dr. Scott Cowen, the former president of Tulane University. Dr. Cowen , who is now a faculty member,   as  shares his insights of surviving a crisis, which in his case was Hurricane Katrina.   He believes that...

This episode addresses the upcoming enrollment cliff that institutions of higher education are facing.  Bill Conley  is  vice president for  enrollment at Bucknell University , which is  in  an enviable position with a 3 0- percent admittance rate  and a strong alumni base . The in stitution offers  nationally recognized programs  in arts, science, engineering and management.    Conley , who began...

Dr. Philip Rous  is  provost and senior vice president for academic affairs  of  University  of  Maryland Baltimore County .  He has been at UMBC for 29 years, both as a faculty member and administrator. He tries to facilitate the community as a whole to grow and expand.   Founded in 1966, UMBC is a relatively young  public research university  that  is  building  a new model of a modern universit...

In the summer of 2011, conversations began with the Governor's office about potential mergers. Toward the end of the year an announcement was made that four mergers would occur. This resulted in eight institutions being merged into four. The most complex merger involved Georgia Health Sciences University and Augusta State University, which created one larger and more comprehensive institution than...

Dr. Lori Varlotta is president of Hiram College, a small liberal arts college with approximately 1,000 students in the traditional college and 200 in the adult program. She is the campus' 22nd president, the first female to serve in that role. Hiram recently completed a major organizational redesign that followed closely on the heels of a very inclusive strategic planning process. The strategic pl...

Episode Summary The Change Leader CEO and President Drumm McNaughton and Aurora University Vice President for Marketing and Communications Deb Maue share their insights during the second annual wrap-up of happenings in higher education. This show notes offers a follow-up on the pair's predictions for 2019 as well as insights on what to prepare for in 2020. Mergers, Consolidates and Closures 2018 P...

Episode Summary Dr. Russ Poulin served on the subcommittee on the recent federal Negotiated Rulemaking (Neg Reg) negotiations where he had the opportunity to provide input on recommendations that were voted on by the full committee. He was recently promoted to be the Executive Director of WCET. In this podcast, he discusses some of the decisions that came out of the Neg Reg and were published. Tyi...

TRACS Annual Meeting Learnings | Changing Higher Ed 028 Episode Summary The Transnational Association of Christian Colleges and Schools (TRACS), an accreditation body for Christian institutions of higher education, works with approximately 100 institutions. Founded in 1979, the organization is a voluntary non-profit self-governing body that promotes the welfare, interests and development of higher...

P27 – Washington Update with Tom Netting Episode Summary The Department of Education published final regulations that had achieved unprecedented consensus prior to the reporting deadline for the master calendar. However, two of the three regulations were not finalized in time for the publishing deadline and so will not go into effect on July 1, 2020 but at a later date. The House Democrats complet...

Assessment Ed 026 – Grant Aldrich Episode Summary This program focused on the future of online program management (OPM). When online education began to emerge, many higher education institutions didn't have the wherewithal and talent to ramp up online programs so many companies started offering OPM services in program conception and creation. Over time, OPMs have expanded to include student recrui...

Federal legislators and policymakers continue to try to work through policy and legislative changes that will have significant impacts on higher education. These include efforts by the U.S. Department of Education to alter rules developed during the Obama Administration. In addition, Congress continues to focus on trying to come up with a workable plan to update the Higher Education Act. Regulator...

Dr. Karen Haynes retired as president of Cal State San Marcos on June 30, 2019. She was the longest-seated president in the CSU system and the first woman to hold this role in history. Haynes began her presidency in 2004 when the institution had a student population of 7,000 and an alumni base of 13,000. Through her leadership, the campus grew to serve 17,000 students and now has approximately 45,...

Episode Summary Facing declining enrollments due to changing demographics and societal factors, many higher education institutions are engaging in marketing practices that don't make sense.   Instead, institutions should consider embracing marketing strategies that are based on informal and formal market research. Developing these strategies should include reviewing current messages, crafting new...

The latest Neg Reg (negotiated rulemaking) process examined the fundamental rules that guide higher education institutions' interactions with the Department of Education with regards to student aid and related programs.   The Department has used access to student aid to bring a lot of aspects of higher education under federal supervision. The process, which ended in April 2019, focused on accredit...

Episode Summary New market forces are leading to disruption in higher education and institutions. Not surprisingly, tremendous innovation in technology-enhanced education, including the ways that students are taught and learn, continues to emerge. Institutions like Drexel University are testing new models that allow them to individualize education and diversifying their portfolio of programs to fi...

Episode Summary Assessment is critical for ensuring instruction is effective in helping students to learn. This data is even more important as the demographics of students and expectations of what higher education should accomplish change. These instruments need to be part of a curriculum mapping process. In addition, meaningful assessments can be used to make instructional decisions in ways that...

Episode Summary Diversity, equity, and inclusion continue to be critical issues for higher education. Many of these issues are fanned by repercussions of historical events as well as unconscious biases based on unknown U.S. history and individuals tending to remain in monolithic groups. Institutions of higher education have a duty to make their campuses a model of inclusivity where every student,...

Higher education needs to do a better job of preparing future leaders, especially in terms of leadership development and succession planning.   Some leaders, while academically very bright in their discipline, take on administrative roles with no knowledge of leadership or management. This can have severe ramifications for a department, college or university. Therefore, it's important to identify...