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Welcome to innovating together, a podcast produced by the University Innovation Alliance. This is a podcast for busy people in higher education who are looking for the “aha moments” that can propel their work forward. Innovating Together curates the best insights, research, and experts.

Bridget Burns, CEO of the University Innovation Alliance, and Doug Lederman, Editor and Co-Founder of Inside Higher Ed, speak with Dr. Shonda Gibson, Senior Associate Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs at Texas A&M University, on the Weekly Wisdom Podcast. Dr. Gibson talks about what America needs most from higher education, the operational challenges and rewards for a major university system, how to best serve returning students, and humility and perspective as leadership attributes. Topics include:


  • Innovation in higher ed begins with individual faculty and department chairs
  • 
Examining the barriers that prevent institutions from putting students first
  • Transcending schools’ or departments’ traditional battle for resources
  • 
Career advice and recommended reading for higher ed leaders

Bridget Burns, CEO of the University Innovation Alliance, and Doug Lederman, Editor and Co-Founder of Inside Higher Ed, speak with Dr. Lisa Vollendorf, President of SUNY Empire State, on the Weekly Wisdom Podcast. President Vollendorf talks about what has shaped her as a leader, reversing higher ed’s tendency toward elitism, how leaders and institutions can grow through traumatic events, and the value of being present and making the best possible impact. Topics include:


  • How educational status is a proven marker for longevity in the U.S.

  • The problem with students losing credits when transferring between institutions

  • Surviving both a regional wildfire and the stress of pursuing a harassment case
  • Identifying and following your north star
  • Two books supporting effective leadership

On this episode of the Weekly Wisdom Podcast, Bridget Burns, CEO of the University Innovation Alliance, and Doug Lederman, Editor and Co-Founder of Inside Higher Ed, discuss how higher ed leaders can best share their own positive, success-oriented approaches with other institutions. Together, they explore pitching scalable ideas from a place of commonality, respecting the time and interest of leaders at other institutions, owning and remediating mistakes, and speaking with a collective voice. Topics include:


  • Framing a value proposition that doesn’t sound like a sales pitch
  • 
Finding the right audience and understanding how the idea may be received
  • 
Honesty, authenticity, and confidentiality

  • The perils and advantages of transparency

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