Guiding AGB’s Next Chapter: The Path Ahead

I am the product of higher education.

I understand the value of higher education, what it has done for me individually, and then what it does for our country as a value proposition.

As a lawyer, I worked with higher education institutions

As I moved across that transom and began working in higher education it became a passion and a mission for me.

I became the general counsel and executive vice chancellor for the California State University System, and became the president at Cal State Fullerton.

And I also have been on the foundation board for Cal State Fullerton.

The number one issue facing higher education boards today is a threat to their independence and autonomy. Independence is under attack across the country. And in the legislatures of many states. There are policymakers and politicians that want to, impose their views on what higher education should look like on higher education institutions
and governing boards.

For the better part of 200 years in this country higher education has had an independence that is essential for freedom of exploration of ideas, for protecting free speech, for intellectual thought and discovery.

These essential values and the things that make our nation great, and the things that we believe in building a community, they all emanate from our
institutions of higher education.

And they all are a result of that independence for freedom to examine what’s best, freedom to examine where we might go, where innovation comes from.

We have done a great job in this country of increasing access to higher education.

But we also have to recognize that student success isn’t just about getting them in the door, matriculating them at the institution.

It’s about actually having them graduate, having them succeed, and making sure that when they graduate, they are fully equipped with all the tools that they need to build the family in the life they desire.

The idea of student success has become much more complicated and much more comprehensive.

Higher education boards have to be able to make policy and create metrics that assure that student success is actually occurring.

Leadership support for our higher education institutions is essential. Burnout is occurring in higher education. That is something new that we haven’t seen before.

And I think the the solution to that is a need for support for those leaders, support at the governing board level, for those leaders, and a support
through mentorship and collegiality and helping those leaders through some of the tough times.

It is a critical need, and one that I’m glad that we’ll be able to help fill.

The business model for higher education has remained static, not just in our country, but in history, for quite some time. Forces outside of higher education are on the move to change the model in by which we deliver education, equip students for the future.

There has to be a constant evaluation and reevaluation of how we deliver higher education to our communities. This is a pressing issue. It’s happening whether higher education wants it to happen or not.

Don’t fight it. Embrace it.

Find ways to use the new paradigms that we find ourselves in to actually create a better delivery of higher education and a better, and vibrant, university community.

Most successful institutions you see in the United States usually have very effective governance models.

Great institutions start with great governing boards. And I think that effective board members really are there to create an environment of success.

The value of AGB is as a supporter of leadership in higher education. Leadership is critical for everything that leads to success, whether it’s the board of trustees or the president, you can’t do it alone.

You need help and support, best practices to be provided to you and shared with you.

You need mentoring and coaching if this is something that is new to you or you’re looking for ways to innovate and change strategically.

And members of boards of trustees often are not steeped or understanding of how higher education boards are supposed to work.

I think it’s really critical that AGB provides them with the necessary tools to be successful in their governance roles.

We do so much in as far as doing webinars, our magazine, our conferences, we have all the great, you know, current topics, and we’re fairly nimble on pushing out content that helps members deal with these critical issues.

I love AGB and all the things they do because it makes institutions better.

AGB is the gold standard for board governance and for issues surrounding leadership.

That is the business of AGB. That is our mission: To improve and provide access for great governance in higher education.