A few years ago, I realized that social had tremendous potential that was only increasing, not just as a transactional communication tool but as a space to have meaningful relationships with prospects, current students, their parents, alumni, community members, even the media. However, up to that time, my campus had focused more on improving old media than on investing in new. The danger of falling behind if we didn’t do something to jumpstart our efforts was real. We needed to cover a lot of ground, both technical and strategic, in a short time. That’s why I brought a team to Academic Impressions’ Social Media Strategy for Higher Education: Beyond the Basics conference (twice, in fact). The breadth of material at the conference and how it was covered allowed my staff and me to plan our work, set goals, and identify the metrics to gauge our progress. We talked the whole way home about next steps and began implementing almost immediately after the conference. Among State University of New York’s 27 four-year campuses, SUNY Oneonta was ranked #1 in social media presence by students in 2015. Engagement with our Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts continues to increase, and we’re shifting ad dollars away from traditional media […]
Empathy and compassion are critical for high-performing academic leaders, but institutions often undervalue these leadership competencies due to implicit gender bias. Let’s look at how to counter that tendency. This is the second in a series of articles on challenging androcentrism in higher education. by Rosalind Spigel, Organizational Development Consultant and Leadership Coach, Spigel Consulting In this second article, we’ll look at one set of leadership traits we identified earlier in the series: empathy and compassion. We’ll examine: How Empathy and Compassion are Linked to Leadership and Team Performance As the idea of emotional intelligence has become more accepted in the years since Goleman, Boyatzis, and McGee began publishing their research on it, acceptance of empathy and compassion as leadership competencies has also become more common. As a leadership competency, empathy is defined as the ability to: Compassion moves beyond understanding to action, such as acting in someone else’s interest. In the human systems that are our colleges and universities, managing conflict, coordination, and relationships is paramount. Leading with empathy and compassion inspires trust, and trust strengthens relationships at the individual, team, and system levels. We know that addressing conflict with an empathetic skill set — including listening, openness, and understanding — […]
Susan Chubinskaya, PhDVice Provost for Faculty Affairs, Klaus Kuettner Professor for Osteoarthritis Research, Professor in the Departments of Pediatrics, Orthopedic Surgery, and Internal Medicine at Rush University Amarjit S. Virdi, PhDDirector of the Office of Rush Mentoring Programs, Associate Professor in the Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology at Rush University The Challenge As a private, nonprofit healthcare institution offering certificate, undergraduate (very few), graduate degrees, and postgraduate training, Rush University (RU), an academic arm of Rush University Medical Center and Rush System for Health in Chicago, has almost 2000 faculty, and 52% are women. Since July 2006, we’ve been invested in developing systemic mentoring programs for our faculty, beginning with the Rush Research Mentoring Program (RRMP), which helps early career faculty develop and lead independent, extramurally funded translational research programs. Building on the framework of the RRMP, we’ve subsequently developed other mentoring programs, such as Rush Educational Mentoring Program (REMP), mentoring program for postdoctoral fellows through Rush Postdoctoral Society (RPDS), and, recently, our Rush Women Faculty Mentoring Program (RWMP). All these programs provide tremendous resources to faculty, offer continued education credits, and are optional, though participation in these programs is highly encouraged. Gender equity and diversity is one of […]
Is it time to launch that new academic program? Here is the ‘art’ and ‘science’ of answering that question.
Academic Entrepreneurship walks you through strategies for identifying, creating, and growing the right academic programs – both the mindset needed and the practical steps. Included in the book are templates, samples, worksheets, and case studies.
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Two, 90-Minute Online Trainings:
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More institutions are using small and big data sources across the prospective and current student lifecycle to inform key decisions related to enrollment and retention. To take a look at how Strategic Enrollment Management (SEM) is changing and to get ideas for how institutions can better leverage their data, we reached out to a panel of three prominent experts: These three, joined by Laura Jensen (associate provost for planning and effectiveness at Colorado State University), will also be discussing this topic in more depth at our upcoming conference Effectively Leveraging Data in Enrollment Management. Here is what they shared with us today. What Advances are We Making? What are the Opportunities? Sarah Seigle. Real-time data and analytics have become more important across all stages of the student lifecycle. Looking at three of the biggest functions of a strategic enrollment management plan—student recruitment, financial aid, and retention—where have you seen many institutions make recent advances in incorporating data into their decision-making? John Dysart. I have seen more colleges bring analytics into financial aid. In recent years, financial aid leveraging has become nearly commonplace. It seems that the majority of colleges and universities are now using some type of leveraging formula, awarding grid or preferential […]
In January, we shared three effective models for more holistic corporate engagement. This is the second article in our series on corporate engagement in higher education. While partnering faculty members with companies seeking research partnerships is increasingly attractive to colleges and universities, faculty may approach the new partnerships cautiously. Building effective corporate and faculty partnerships requires you to address potential challenges early — ideally before a contract is in place! We spent time interviewing institutions with successful corporate engagement strategies. Here is a review of the challenges, steps to take in addressing them, and key considerations for aligning corporate and faculty interests proactively and responsibly. 3 Critical Challenges 1. Building Faculty Trust and Buy-in At Kansas State’s Office of Corporate Engagement, Director Richard Potter explains that one of their biggest challenges has been to change how faculty partner with corporations, and to build trust in the university’s vision for a holistic approach to corporate relations. They have been asking faculty and departments to share information about existing partnerships with companies, but some have been reluctant to compromise those relationships. At California State University Fullerton, the challenge has been to build faculty relationships with the CSU Foundation, which was established in […]
The transfer credit evaluation process is one that touches many different stakeholders. The registrar’s office is where the heart of the action happens, but the way credit is articulated has far-reaching implications for the admissions office, department chairs, and academic advisors as well. Because all of these entities have such a stake, it can be tricky for registrars to manage policy changes and gain the buy-in needed to streamline their transfer credit evaluation processes. Two Success Stories at CSU Kelley Brundage, associate registrar at Colorado State University, has worked in transfer credit evaluation for over 20 years and has led two major streamlining initiatives at CSU. The first large-scale streamlining initiative occurred when Kelley was a new hire at the university. As she entered into her new leadership role as associate registrar, she was advised that the overall perception of the registrar’s office was, on the whole, a negative one: other Departments viewed her office as inflexible and unlikely to compromise, and as a result, the efficiency of the transfer credit evaluation process was suffering. Kelley immediately began taking steps to turn the perception of her office around and gain allies throughout the institution. The second streamlining initiative that Kelley […]
In this interview, learn about a unique approachto designing a more immersive learning experience. In this short clip, you’ll hear my conversation with Bruce Kusch, the current president of LDS Business College. Formerly the chief academic officer at LDS, Bruce spearheaded an instructional framework there called the i4 model of design. i4 means campus instruction that is: To pilot this model, Bruce worked with an LDS faculty member to pilot a semester-long leadership course with no syllabus. He is going to tell us why he decided to do this and what it looked like along the way. Bruce Kusch, LDS College. What our mission here is … is to really prepare our students for the world of work that they will encounter when they graduate. The jobs that are waiting for our students when they finish don’t come with a textbook or a syllabus, and they’ve got to be ready to go to work and produce. The best way that we can help them do that is to put them in a learning environment that in the greatest way possible simulates work. Bridget Dattilo, Academic Impressions. So your intent here is to focus on building the mindset in students for […]
Develop the Leaders Your Institution Depends On Academic Impressions Membership is your institution’s strategic tool for growing confident, capable leaders—from first-time supervisors to senior teams driving institutional strategy. Invest in Your Team Why Institutions Choose Academic Impressions Membership Whether you’re investing in a small team or scaling leadership development campus-wide, Academic Impressions Membership offers a flexible, strategic way to grow leadership at every level. Supervisors gain tools to manage with clarity and confidence Chairs strengthen their ability to lead through influence Mid- and senior-level leaders grow in strategic thinking, collaboration, and communication Leaders at every level develop shared skills, language, and practices that build stronger teams With resources designed specifically for higher education professionals, membership supports both individual growth and institutional priorities—so your people become stronger leaders, and your teams become more aligned, resilient, and effective. Where Membership Makes an Impact Strengthen Everyday Leadership Skills Across Campus Whether formal or informal, leadership happens in daily moments—supervising others, giving feedback, running meetings, or managing conflict. See More Expand Membership helps individuals at all levels: Motivate and coach team members Deliver constructive feedback that builds trust Run meetings that move work forward Resolve conflict with confidence and care Build self-awareness using The […]
