Last week at ACPA in Baltimore, I had the opportunity to lead sessions, host conversations, and really listen to individuals, to groups, and to the current running underneath all of it. Here is what I heard.
The Crisis of the Moment
Student affairs professionals are exhausted: two decades of doing more with less has taken a real toll.
Many student affairs professionals feel under attack, literally not figuratively. They are under attack from disingenuous executive orders; erasure of offices, work, and identities; death threats they receive; and more.
Many are feeling hurt, abandoned, and betrayed by societal norms, campus leadership, and those “allies” who pledged solidarity until it came with a price. This hurt often shows up as anger, making healing and agency more needed than ever and harder to access.
Many feel stuck, with professional development gone, conference travel eliminated, and upward movement feeling out of reach.
Reactionary responses to AI, both all-in and never-ever, are getting in the way of thoughtful and ethical implementation.
The instability in the world around them from the news, AI, natural disasters, and more leaves them yearning for stability in just one aspect of their lives. As a result, the folks yearning and calling for change are often the same folks who resist actual change initiatives, given their experience of the world around them.
It’s also interesting what I didn’t really hear much about: budget cuts, enrollment cliffs, accreditation, student mental health, and more. It’s not that these are not major issues campuses are facing; they’re just a given at this point.
A Call for Transformational Leadership
The response needed in these challenging times is evident to all, yet institutions are moving slowly toward progress, and many are regressing. Too many institutional leaders are stuck in a fear-based status quo, unwilling to innovate or go first (understandably) for fear of drawing attention to themselves, their institution, and their students.
Individual busyness and reactivity paradoxically produce institutional sluggishness. Leaders need spaciousness and time to think, so they can lead toward nimbleness, innovation, and transformation.
Leaders at all levels often do not understand what the other levels actually do or require, which compounds the problem. We need a better understanding of the different levels of leadership and the varied responsibilities, so we complement each other rather than compete.
What I heard at ACPA is not new. I’ve heard much of this before; what is new is the severity and the fact that it’s happening at the same time. We are not in a crisis in higher education, but a polycrisis. That is new. We need courageous leadership to reimagine the future of higher education. We need transformation to be led effectively.
A polycrisis requires more than good intentions and hard work. It requires leaders with the internal foundation to stay grounded under pressure and the structural design to lead higher education with coherence and purpose. That is the work. If you are ready to lead forward, let’s connect.
