Future U Podcast - The Pulse of Higher Ed

On this episode, Jeff sits down with one of the authors of Job Moves: 9 Steps To Making Progress in Your Career, Future U.’s very own Michael B. Horn. The two discuss the lessons that the book, which offers research-based guidance to individuals searching for new work, holds for students and the colleges that serve them. They then dive into discussing a topic they each get a lot of questions about...

More than a decade ago, a wave of research pointing to the inefficacy of remedial education was followed by a massive investment in rethinking how we prepare students who need extra support to access college. So why, after all that, does remedial ed still play such a big role on college campuses today? To help us tackle that question, we’re joined by Anne Kim, FutureEd Senior Fellow and author of...

What does a community college in Idaho have to do with mounting economic tensions between the U.S. and China? A lot, actually.  On this episode of Future U., Michael and Jeff dive into what the CHIPS and Science Act—the federal spending package designed to reduce the United States’ reliance on foreign manufacturers for microchips and other advanced technologies—means for a segment of American post...

Technology is an increasingly important element of everything that colleges do, yet it remains a distinct and separate function at too many schools. Jeff visited the Educause Conference, focused on tech in higher ed, to chat with college leaders about how they are leveraging IT on their campuses. They discuss best practices in bridging the tech-academic divide, the role of data in decision making,...

Regional public universities have been hit harder than most colleges by recent enrollment decreases. On this episode, Michael and Jeff sit down with President Jonathan Koppell of Montclair State University, a regional that has bucked this trend, to learn more about their success. They dig in on lessons Koppell learned as a dean at ASU, the college’s programs for underserved students, and how the c...

While college-going rates have increased over recent decades, completion rates have hardly budged. On this episode, Michael and Jeff sit down with one entrepreneur working to change that. Mike Larsson is the co-founder and CEO of Duet, an organization collaborating with an online university to provide on-the-ground coaching and physical space for students. They discuss the role wraparound supports...

On this episode of the Future U. Campus Tour, Michael and Jeff sit down with leaders from Western Governors University to learn about innovations around the university, with special attention paid to those at WGU’s fast-growing School of Education. They discuss the expansion of work-based learning with President Pulsipher and Provost Hills McBeth, examine the drivers of the Ed. School’s growth wit...

On this episode, Michael and Jeff riff through a range of topics. Among them: how no constituency is actually in favor of cost cutting on college campuses; whether consultants can play any productive role in higher ed; and how Disney’s succession drama holds many lessons for boards of trustees at colleges and universities. This episode is made with support from Ascendium Education Philanthropy and...

The impact of college athletics is felt throughout institutions, but too often sports are considered separate from the rest of higher ed. On this episode, Michael and Jeff connect the dots between recent changes to college athletics and the campus-wide ripple effects they could have. They are joined by Matt Brown, author of the college sports newsletter, Extra Points, to chat NIL (Name, Image, Lik...

Much of the buzz around artificial intelligence centers on its potential to transform the college of tomorrow, but there are many schools making meaningful change with this technology today. On this episode, we go deep on the applications of AI from recruitment to instruction to supporting post-grad success. We sit down Lev Gonick, Chief Information Officer at Arizona State University, and Ashley...

On this episode, Jeff and Michael tackle the question everyone is asking: how will AI transform higher ed? For help in finding the answer, they turn to bestselling author and professor of computer science at Georgetown University, Cal Newport. They discuss AI’s academic and operational implications, its ethical and practical considerations, and the stages and timeline over which we can expect this...

To kick off Season 8, Michael and Jeff break down the summer’s higher ed headlines. They discuss this year’s FAFSA rollout, recent campus protest fallout, leadership changes, college closures, online program management providers, the presidential election, and high school grading. This episode is made possible with support from Ascendium Education Group and the Gates Foundation.  Key Moments 0:00...

In this episode, Jeff and Michael dive into the complex world of dual enrollment, examining its rapid growth, potential benefits, and emerging challenges. They speak with John Fink, a senior research associate at the Community College Research Center, to understand the various dual enrollment arrangements, the students they serve, and the outcomes they achieve. The conversation also explores the f...

In this special episode, Jeff engages in a lively conversation with Tina Gridiron of ACT and Kennon Harrison of ETS about the future of skills-based hiring. The discussion, recorded live during the Horizons Summit powered by Jobs for the Future (JFF), revolved around how employers can better assess the skills job candidates have, how candidates can better understand what skills are needed for most...

Hosts Jeff Selingo and Michael Horn are joined by Dr. Len Cassuto, an author and professor at Fordham University, and focus their conversation on the role of PhD students and what the challenges in that part of academia might mean for higher ed. They dive into the subjects that Len explores in his new book, The New PhD: How to Build a Better Graduate Education, such as the changes that should be m...

In this rerun from episode 150, Jeff Selingo welcomes Lynn Perry Wooten, President of Simmons University, for a conversation on the unique position of smaller universities in higher education. They discuss some vital concerns facing smaller universities like Simmons, such as combining less popular liberal arts majors, combatting dropping college enrollment numbers, and embracing online education p...

New York Times columnist and author David Leonhardt discusses his new book, “Ours Was The Shining Future: The Story of the American Dream." In his conversation with Michael and Jeff, they talk about the impact of the high-school movement on the U.S. economy last century, what a similar higher ed movement might look like in this century, and why the value of the college is being questioned. The epi...

In too many rural areas, workers lack access to affordable training pathways to high-quality jobs. Jeff and Michael sit down with Mallory Dwinal-Palisch, Chancellor of Reach University, to learn about how Reach is addressing this challenge with an apprenticeship approach to teacher education. In the first of this two-part conversation, they discuss the theory and practice that informed Reach’s fou...

Jeff and Michael are joined by the CEOs of Academic Partnerships, Fernando Bleichmar, and Coursera, Jeff Maggioncalda, to talk about the future of online learning, including a new study on ROI, the role of degrees vs. credentials in the job market, and what AI will mean for online ed. This episode is sponsored by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and Ascendium Education Group. Key Moments 00:00...

In this season 7 wrap-up episode of Future U., Jeff and Michael go to a rapid-fire format and break down six topics in higher education: recent enrollment trends, the state of online education and OPMs, the ongoing FAFSA issues, campus protests related to the Israel-Hamas conflict, the increasing focus on value in higher education, and recent developments in compensating college athletes. This epi...

Learning is at the heart of higher ed’s purpose, but how many institutions have a strong sense of the skills and knowledge students are gaining? On this episode, Michael and Jeff welcome two innovators helping colleges to better validate student learning through competency-based education (CBE): Amber Garrison Duncan of the Competency Based Education Network and Kelle Parsons of the American Insti...

Boards of Trustees are the principal governing bodies of higher ed institutions, but they can also be the furthest from their day-to-day operations. So how can colleges best leverage their leadership? To tackle this question, Michael and Jeff welcome Chris Romer and Jane Scaccetti, trustees from the boards of Colorado Mountain College and Temple University, respectively. They discuss the Board’s r...

There has been an exodus from higher ed - that much is understood. But what's causing it and what can we do to ensure students are still accessing pathways to opportunity? In this episode, Jeff and Michael grapple with this question with the help of Terrell Dunn whose recent research, done in partnership with HCM Strategists and Edge Research, addresses this very topic. They discuss the increasing...

Jeff and Michael examine the complex world of community colleges and challenge traditional notions of success. Drawing from recent research by Strada Education Foundation, they explore the multifaceted roles these institutions play in students' lives and the importance of looking beyond degree completion rates to assess their true value. With insights from Strada’s Senior Vice President, Dave Clay...

In this thought-provoking episode of Future U., we sit down with Greg Lukianoff, president and CEO of the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) and co-author of the bestselling book "The Coddling of the American Mind," as well as the new book, "The Canceling of the American Mind." Lukianoff shares his insights on the state of free speech on college campuses and examines the rise o...