Engaged By Design

In this episode of the Engaged By Design Podcast , we welcome back Kathy Hagler and Robin Graham , co-authors of The ABCs of Murmuration . Together, we explore Flock Logic —a powerful nature-inspired framework drawn from the mesmerizing behavior of starlings—and how it applies to leadership, teamwork, and learning organizations. You’ll discover: Why high-functioning groups don’t need a single lead...

Podcast: Engaged By Design Episode: Part 3 — Becoming Happy Now Guest: Dr. Sylvia Nemmers — scientist, educator, department chair, survivor, and author of Happy Now . Episode Summary In this powerful final chapter of her story, Dr. Sylvia Nemmers discusses what it means to truly know yourself, especially after life has shaken the identity you’ve relied on. She describes the quiet courage of rebuil...

Podcast: Engaged By Design Episode: Part 2 — Faith, Culture & Courage Abroad Guest: Dr. Sylvia Nemmers — scientist, educator, world traveler, multilingual mother, and author of Happy Now . Episode Summary In this second installment of our three-part conversation, Dr. Sylvia Nemmers takes us around the globe—Pakistan, Jordan, Greece, and beyond—to explore what happens when identity, faith, disa...

Podcast: Engaged By Design Episode: Part 1 — Authenticity & Resilience Guest: Dr. Sylvia Nemmers — scientist, educator, and author of Happy Now: Shattering the Myth of Happily Ever After Episode Summary From childhood blindness to becoming a scientist and department chair, Sylvia traces how authenticity, curiosity, and courageous mentors shaped her leadership. She shares her early life in an i...

In this episode of the Engaged By Design Podcast, Michael and Vernon sit down with Rachel Sweeney, Scholarly Communications Librarian at Bucknell University, for a deep and candid conversation about how generative AI is reshaping scholarship, copyright, authorship, and trust in academic knowledge. Drawing on her background in documentary filmmaking, copyright, and publishing, Rachel explains why t...

Episode Summary In this special conference edition of the Engaged By Design Podcast, Michael and Vernon bring listeners directly into the heart of the Online Learning Consortium (OLC) conference exhibit hall. This episode blends thoughtful narration with real, unedited booth-floor audio conversations between the Engaged By Design team. You’ll hear Michael and Vernon reflect on conference attendanc...

Kathy Hagler and Robin Graham return to explore the “ME” in their ABCs of Murmuration framework—where awareness, beliefs, and connection lay the foundation for leaderful collaboration. In this episode of the Engaged By Design Podcast , Dr. Vernon Smith and Dr. Michael Cottam welcome back Dr. Kathy Hagler and Robin Graham, authors of The ABCs of Murmuration . They unpack the “ME” in their leadershi...

In Part Two of their conversation with Dr. Guieswende Rouamba, Michael and Vernon explore how storytelling brings project management to life. Guieswende introduces us to Bob and George — two characters who illustrate resilience, resistance, and the power of leading without a title. Together, they discuss how story helps us make meaning, navigate change, and see ourselves in the leadership journey....

In this episode, Dr. Vernon Smith and Dr. Michael Cottam talk with Dr. Guieswende Rouamba, learning designer at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and author of The Instructional Designer’s Guide to Project Management. Guieswende shares how project management helps instructional designers navigate complex collaborations and reduce burnout. He introduces his “Three Ps” — People, Process, a...

Description: Project management isn’t just for boardrooms or classrooms—it shows up in art studios, Renaissance fairs, and even around the gaming table. In part two of our conversation with Bridget Davis, PMP, CSM, DASM , we dive into how project management skills translate beyond formal work. Bridget shares her entrepreneurial journey with Heathen Works , her woodburning art business, where plann...

Description: Higher education is a world of committees, governance, and constant change. How can project management thrive in this environment? In this episode of the Engaged By Design Podcast, hosts Dr. Vernon Smith and Dr. Michael Cottam sit down with Bridget Davis, PMP, CSM, DASM , to explore how both Agile and predictive project management frameworks can help leaders succeed in academic settin...

Description Leadership often happens in the middle—not at the very top. In Part 2 of our conversation with Dr. Michelle Loyet, we explore how to lead effectively without relying on positional authority. Michelle shares her experiences at Webster University, where she learned to build coalitions, invite people into change, and balance responsibilities up, down, and across the institution. Michelle...

Episode 22 What if your academic background could become your greatest leadership strength? In Part 1 of this two-part conversation, Dr. Michelle Loyet—known as the “Shenanigans Wrangler” in the book MACRO Leadership—joins Dr. Michael Cottam and Dr. Vernon Smith to share how anthropology became her leadership superpower. As interim Associate Vice President for Enrollment Management at Webster Univ...

Episode 21 Episode Title Competency-Based Learning and the Future of Work — with Dr. Calli Morrison (Part 3 of 3) Episode Summary In the final part of our three-part series, Dr. Cali Morrison dives into the world of competency-based education (CBE), micro-credentials, and the future of learning and work. She shares how she helped build direct assessment CBE programs at American Public University S...

Episode 20 Episode Summary In this second part of our three-part series, Dr. Cali Morrison takes us inside two major projects that shaped the future of higher education: Transparency by Design and the Predictive Analytics Reporting (PAR) Framework. These efforts paved the way for program-level transparency, skills-based hiring, and data-driven student success strategies. Calli shares how Transpare...

Episode 19 EPISODE SUMMARY In this episode of the Engaged By Design Podcast, Dr. Vernon Smith and Dr. Michael Cottam kick off a three-part conversation with Dr. Cali Morrison, Senior Director of Workforce Education and Strategy at EdAssist by Bright Horizons. Calli shares how a rural sociology class—and one infamous challenge involving cow urine—helped spark her unexpected entry into higher educat...

Episode 18 In part two of our conversation, Dr. Jennifer Brock discusses program innovation, credit for prior learning, and how AI is reshaping course design and student success at scale.  In this second episode with Dr. Jennifer Brock, we explore her leadership in designing stackable credentials, building credit for prior learning pathways, and leading groundbreaking grant-funded projects like Ri...

Episode 17 Dr. Jennifer Brock shares her journey from theater to sciences, her path into teaching, and the transformative power of dual enrollment in shaping student identity and confidence. In this episode of the Engaged by Design Podcast , Vernon Smith and Michael Cottam welcome Dr. Jennifer Brock, Executive Vice President of Online Education, Academics, and Services at the Academy of Art Univer...

Episode 16 In part two of our conversation with Dr. Shannon McCarty, Vice President of Learning and Instruction at Calbright College, we shift from Calbright’s mission to the challenges and lessons of leading innovation. Shannon shares candidly about her leadership journey, the mentors who shaped her path, and the values she carries into her role. She reflects on how authenticity, feedback, and ev...

Episode 15  In part 1 of this conversation, Vernon Smith and Michael Cottam reconnect with their longtime colleague and friend,  Dr. Shannon McCarty , Vice President of Learning and Instruction at Calbright College. Shannon shares her journey from faculty at Rio Salado College to leadership roles at National University and Bay Path University, and now to her work at Calbright — California’s 116th...

Episode 14 In Part 2 of our conversation with Dr. Kathy Hagler and Robin Graham, we delve into the Four Path Journey, the conscious habits of thriving, and the “flock logic” that transforms individuals into leaderful teams. Show Notes: In this follow-up to Part 1, we dive deeper into the leadership lessons inspired by nature’s most graceful display of collective intelligence, murmuration. Dr. Kath...

Episode 13 In this first of a two-part conversation, we explore the wisdom of nature with Dr. Kathy Hagler and Robin Graham, co-authors of The ABCs of Murmuration . Discover how the synchronized flight of starlings offers profound lessons for leadership, teamwork, and thriving organizations. Show Notes What can leaders learn from the mesmerizing dance of starlings? In Part 1 of our conversation wi...

Episode 12 In this episode, Michael and Vernon talk with longtime friend and colleague Jarred Truschke—designer, instructional leader, and the creator of MyPurpose, a journal and AI-powered app that helps people align goals with their identity and values. Jarred shares the personal journey that led to the creation of the MyPurpose framework, which guides users through defining their purpose in eig...

Episode 11 Storytelling is a leadership superpower—but too often, we don’t use it well. In this episode, Michael and Vernon dive into why stories matter, especially in leadership roles where influence matters more than control. They share three of the essential story types every leader should have in their toolbox—value, founder, and purpose stories—inspired by Kindra Hall’s book Stories That Stic...

Episode 10 In this second episode of our two-part series, Michael and Vernon explore what happens after unbundling: how faculty and other academic professionals are adapting, defending, and rebundling their roles in an AI-powered world. This episode outlines four irreducibly human responsibilities, three common defense strategies of professions under threat, and four emerging faculty archetypes fo...