Board Responsibility for Equitable Student Success

About the Project

Learn more about the project.

AGB was awarded a grant in November 2021 from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to develop resources to guide governing board oversight of equitable student success.

The project’s initial phase focused on developing resources on equity and student success for governing boards, with an emphasis on institution-wide solutions to impact measurable outcomes. Using these resources, boards can develop the capacity to oversee student success through an equity lens to sharpen their governance policies and elevate the impact of campus-wide programs. The curriculum will highlight data on student success trends and gaps based on demographic characteristics; prioritize this work for institutional transformation, sustainability, and fiduciary duty; and identify strategies and practical resources for boards and chief executives to lead their institutions toward improved outcomes for all students.

The second phase will focus on helping boards assess the impact of AGB’s project and refining it via additional tools, methods, and leading practices for boards to oversee institutional transformation for equitable student success.

Thanks to those who support this project.

The Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges is grateful to the many people who contributed to this project and the related resources developed as part of it. We are especially grateful to Raquel Rall, PhD, who served as the primary author and facilitator, and to the advisory group for the project, whose members offered great wisdom, insights, experience, and inspiration.

Special thanks to

Advisory Group

Lezli Baskerville
President and CEO, National Association of Equal Opportunity in Higher Education (NAFEO) and Chair of the Board, Alliance for Equity in Higher Education 

Bridget Burns
Executive Director, University Innovation Alliance 

Richard Chait
Professor Emeritus of Higher Education, Harvard Graduate School of Education and Former Trustee, Wheaton (Massachusetts), Goucher, and Maryville Colleges 

Raymond Crossman
President, Adler University and Member, AGB Council of Presidents 

Robin Cummings
Chancellor, University of North Carolina at Pembroke 

Eric Felix
Assistant Professor, San Diego State University and Member, SHEEO Equity Advisory Committee

Gina Garcia
Associate Professor, University of Pittsburgh School of Education 

Juliet Garcia
Former Member, AGB Board of Directors and Former President, University of Texas at Brownsville 

Tito Guerrero
Director, Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU) Leadership Academy 

Artis Hampshire-Cowan
Senior Consultant and Senior Fellow, AGB and Former Senior Vice President and Secretary, Howard University 

Ronald Parker
Board Member, Texas Christian University; Director, AGB; and President and CEO, National Association of Securities Professionals 

Amelia Parnell
Vice President for Research and Policy, NASPA (Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education) 

Achille Tenkiang
Program Assistant, Andrew W. Mellon Foundation and Former Trustee, Princeton University

Ivory Toldson
Professor, Howard University; President and CEO, Quality Education for Minorities (QEM) Network; and Director of Education Innovation and Research, NAACP 

Eileen Wilson-Oyelaran
President Emerita, Kalamazoo College and Senior Consultant, AGB 

Project Staff

Members of the project team can provide customized consulting assistance for your board in advancing justice, diversity, equity, and inclusion and equitable student success. Contact Carlton Brown, project co-director, to learn more.

Carlton Brown
Carlton Brown, EdD
Senior Consultant, AGB
Project Co-Director


Raquel M. Rall, PhD
Associate Professor, University of California Riverside
Lead Curriculum Development Consultant 


Demetri L. Morgan, PhD
Associate Professor, Loyola University Chicago
Curriculum Development Consultant
 

headshot of Merrill Schwartz, Senior Vice President, Content Strategy and Development at Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges
Merrill Schwartz
Senior Vice President for Content & Program Strategy, AGB
Project Co-Director

“These principles clarify how governing boards can sustain a commitment to equitable student success. As institutions continue to manage competing priorities, this set of responsibilities will offer critical guidance to ensure that equity is central to all decisions.”

Amelia Parnell

Vice President for Research and Policy, NASPA–Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education