Reinventing U

In this episode of Reinventing U, we are joined by Stephen Gavazzi, Director of the Center for Human Resource Research at The Ohio State University, to explore a blueprint for universities to meet the demands of the current moment by recommitting to the public good.  Drawing on his recent co‑authored piece, “Morrill Act 250: Reinterpreting the Public Research University Compact as Civic Trust in A...

Joshua Eyler, the author of Failing Our Future: How Grades Harm Students, And What We Can Do About It (JHUP 2024), is among the leading experts on grading reform. Praised by the likes of Cathy N. Davidson and Jeff Selingo, Eyler’s book is roughly divided between indictment of current practices and exploring practical solutions. In every case, however, the answer keeps coming back: fundamental refo...

In 2025, University of Toronto Professor of Philosophy and Religion, Robert Gibbs, published What Could a University Be?: Revolutionary Ideas for the Future (University of British Columbia Press). Join us for a highly engaging conversation in which Dr. Gibbs recaps the main points of his argument and along the way explores the distinctive value of research university undergraduate educations, gene...

On this episode of Reinventing U, hear from Dr. Richard J. Reddick, Senior Vice Provost and Dean of the Undergraduate College and Distinguished Service Professor in Educational Leadership and Policy at The University of Texas at Austin. Dr. Reddick’s book Restorative Resistance in Higher Education: Leading in an Era of Racial Awakening and Reckoning (Harvard Education Press, 2023) shares the wisdo...

Brian Rosenberg discusses his new book “Whatever It Is, I’m Against It :Resistance to Change in Higher Education” Brian Rosenberg is currently visiting professor at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. From 2003 until 2020, he served as the 16th President of Macalester College. He is the author of Whatever It Is, I’m Against It:  Resistance to Change in Higher Education, published in 2023 by...

Is a college degree still the quickest path to a good-paying job? That is the question at the heart of Kathleen deLaski’s timely 2025 book, which is the focus of this episode of Reinventing U. As deLaski notes, headlines are dominated by the cost and ROI of a 4-year degree, and more families are asking themselves: Is college worth it? For many Americans, confused and stressed by mixed messages, th...

Leading Generously with Kathleen Fitzpatrick, Interim Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Studies, Michigan State University

The University Unfettered Public Higher Education in an Age of Disruption Ian F. McNeely Columbia University Press The public university as we once knew it is gone and never coming back. After generations of fickle state support, public universities behave more and more like their private counterparts—charging what the market will bear, offering what consumers demand, competing relentlessly with p...

We interview Mary Wright, Associate Provost for Teaching and Learning, Executive Director of the Sheridan Center for Teaching and Learning, and Professor (Research) Sociology, at Brown University. She is also a former president (2017-18) of the Professional and Organizational Development (POD) Network in Higher Education, the U.S. professional association for educational development. The conversat...

This episode features an interview with Corbin Campbell, the Associate Dean of Academic Affairs and Associate Professor in the School of Education at American University, hosted by Steve Dandaneau, Executive Director, and Emma Hanson, Senior Student Coordinator. The topics include Campbell's newly published book: Great College Teaching: Where It Happens and How to Foster It Everywhere, published b...

In episode 10, we talk with Father Jim Heft , an Alton M. Brooks Professor of Religion at the University of Southern California and Founder and President Emeritus of the Institute for Advanced Catholic Studies (IACS) . Father Heft was also honored with the Theodore Hesburgh Award for long and distinguished service to Catholic Higher Education in 2011.  He served on the board of the American Associ...

In episode 9, we talk with  Colin Potts , the Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education at Georgia Institute for Technology where he oversees offices and programs that effect undergraduate education such as the  Georgia Tech Career Center , the  Honors Program (HP ),  Academic Engagement Programs ,  Tutoring & Academic Support,   Undergraduate Academic Advising ,  Pre-Graduate & Pre-Professional Ad...

In episode 8, we talk with Deborah A. Santiago , the co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Excelencia in Education . Before Excelencia, she was Vice President for data and Policy Analysis at the LA County Alliance for Student Achievement, a policy analyst at the Library of Congress’ Congressional Research Service on legislative issues in higher education, and informed programmatic and budgetar...

In episode 7, we talk with  Eric Waldo , Executive Director of Michelle Obama’s Reach Higher Initiative and Chief Access and Equity Officer at The Common Application. Before joining the White House, Waldo was Deputy Chief and Staff at the Department of Education, where he helped lead the initiatives for  The Recovery Act  under former president Barack Obama. Waldo also helped manage the Department...

In episode 6, we talk with  Dr. OiYan-Poon , Associate Professor of Higher Education Leadership and Director of the Center for Race and Intersectional Studies in Educational Equity, the RISE Center, at Colorado State University. Dr. Poon also served as President of the University of California Student Association, is an advocate for the establishment of the Asian American and Native American Pacif...

In episode 5, we talk with  Dr. Debie Rudder Lohe , Director of the Policy Reinert Center for Transformative Teaching and Learning at St. Louis University. Dr. Lohe was also appointed acting Associate Provost for Faculty Affairs and Development. Topics that are discussed include transformation teaching and learning through writing and pedagogy, undergraduate education at a Jesuit or Catholic unive...

In episode 4, we talk with Dr. Michael Dennin , Vice Provost for Teaching and Learning and Dean of Undergraduate Education at the University of California, Irvine, a long-time member of the RC's UVP network and a professor of physics and astronomy. Some topics included administrative structure, coaching through mistakes and goal setting, social mobility, role of public research universities, Learn...

In episode 3, we interview Dr. DeAngela Burns-Wallace, Vice Provost for Undergraduate Studies at the University of Kansas about changing the culture of busy-ness and meetings that many university administrators face. Topics include managing email, maintaining schedules that allow administrators to be effective change agents, and how to help students cope with information overload and over-scheduli...

In episode 2, we interview Dr. Anne Cleary, Professor of Psychology at Colorado State University and co-author of  A Guide to Effective Studying and Learning.  Topics include effective learning techniques, dispelling myths about learning, and helping students manage cognitive load. Thanks to The Rubbish Zoo for theme music. 

In episode 1, we interview Charlie Nutt, Executive Director of NACADA. Topics include the roles of advisors and administrators in student success, changing campus culture to embrace collaboration, and addressing achievement and equity gaps.  Thanks to The Rubbish Zoo for theme music. An extended version is available to members at http://reinventioncollaborative.org.

This is an intro to Reinventing U: A Podcast of the Reinvention Collaborative, hosted by Steve Dandaneau, Executive Director, and Liz Mauk, Assistant Director. The RC is a national consortium of research universities dedicated to strengthening undergraduate education. Visit http://reinventioncollaborative.org  for more information.