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Upcoming Events

2024 HLC Annual Conference

April 16, 2024
Time: 12:00 pm - 12:45 pm
Location: Chicago, Illinois

Strategy, Culture, and Data – Executing on Critical Change Initiatives

Institutions are facing internal and external pressures that accelerate the need for substantial and rapid change. Leaders must now shepherd their organizations through transformation that may significantly disrupt traditional institutional approaches.

In this session, Rilie Sibold, Associate at rpk GROUP, and Dr. Steve Simpson, Chief Strategy Officer at Oakland Community College (OCC), will speak to OCC’s three-year long transformation. By developing strategy, influencing culture, and executing on data-informed approaches, OCC was able to meet the challenges of the day and prepare for a stronger future.

Attendees will develop a deeper understanding of critical change initiatives including:

  • How to assess and expand institutional capacity for change
  • The role of culture, data infrastructure, and strategic planning in developing a shared future vision and change management plan
  • Understanding university data and acting on data-informed decisions

Attendees will have the opportunity to learn from OCC’s journey and apply learnings at their home institutions.

Rilie Sibold is an Associate with rpk GROUP. For more than 10 years prior to joining rpk, Rilie worked in Kansas institutions of higher education leading sustainability and innovation efforts at university, technical, and community colleges. Her work connected academic and business models through revenue and cost analysis, and an understanding of student/employer demand and markets. As an Associate, she supports our clients in fulfilling mission and student success under a sustainable financial model.

Dr. Steve Simpson is currently the Chief Strategy Officer at Oakland Community College and is responsible for planning, accreditation, quality, and institutional effectiveness. Previously, Simpson was president of Baker College of Jackson, where he held multiple positions of escalating responsibility at the Jackson, Allen Park and Flint campuses, and online and graduate studies for all 10 campuses. Simpson holds an Ed.D. and an M.Ed. in educational leadership from Argosy University Online, and a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.

Note: Session time listed in ET

Recent Webinars

Campus Economics: Adopting a New Mental Model for Higher Education Finance

June 28, 2023
Time: 1:00 pm - 2:00 pm
Location: Zoom

Higher education leaders increasingly find that their institutional business model is unresponsive to the needs of the market they serve.  The academic portfolio of programs does not reflect demand from students and employers.  And students question the value of the degree given the time and cost to obtain it and the perceived outcomes that result. Compounding the problem, faculty and staff delivering programs and services lack the mental model and language necessary to support needed change to achieve a sustainable model.

Join us on June 28 as rpk’s Founder Rick Staisloff discusses higher education’s current business models and their responsiveness to a changing market with Sandy Baum, nonresident senior fellow in the Center on Education Data and Policy at the Urban Institute and professor emerita of economics at Skidmore College.

Rick and Sandy will engage around these key topics:

  • In what ways is the long-standing business model(s) in higher education able to address current needs of students and employers, and how might that model need to change?
  • What hinders the move to greater transparency and accountability across stakeholders serving higher education?
  • How might a shift to more economic thinking impact current debates around free education, cost structures, and outcomes in higher education?

Across all of these topics, Rick will share from rpk’s use cases, and Sandy will share from her most recent publication Campus Economics, How Economic Thinking Can Help Improve College and University Decisions.

Register here!

 

Higher Education’s Arrival at Strategic Partnerships

April 19, 2023
Time: 1:00 pm - 2:00 pm

Higher Education has historically been reluctant to engage in strategic partnerships, based in large part on a mistaken belief that all programs and services must be directly delivered by an institution in service to a unique mission, culture and student population.  That resistance is beginning to erode, however, as institutions recognize the potential for both cost savings and expansion of programs and services under strategic partnership models.

Join us on April 19 as rpk’s Founder Rick Staisloff discusses the shift toward strategic partnerships with John MacIntosh, Managing Partner at SeaChange.  SeaChange helps nonprofits apply quantitative approaches to current challenges –  including grant-making in support of mergers and sustained collaboration.

Rick and John will engage around these key topics:

  • Where does higher education’s historic reluctance to consider strategic partnerships come from, and what’s driving the current openness to these partnerships?
  • What are some common factors behind successful partnerships, and what pitfalls should be avoided?
  • How might leadership begin a conversation around strategic partnerships with their senior teams and boards?

Across all of these topics, John and Rick will share from rpk’s and SeaChange’s use cases in supporting institutions with a move toward strategic partnerships.

Register here.

Higher Education’s Shift to Strategic Finance

November 9, 2022
Time: 1:00 pm - 2:00 pm
Location: Zoom

Higher Education’s Shift to Strategic Finance

We’re excited for our next Webinar Wednesday installment on November 9th at 1 p.m. ET! We’ll be discussing the application of a strategic finance lens in higher education, and the forces that support and create obstacles to this shift.

Joining us will be one of our great partners in the work:
Matthew Crellin, Program Officer, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation

Matt will share from his deep experience in championing and doing the hard work around strategic finance. We’ll plan to touch upon existing capacity around strategic finance, the levers that impact that capacity, and use cases that encourage our belief that higher education is increasingly adopting strategic finance best practice.

There are great lessons for all of higher education in Matt’s experiences, but this session is especially relevant for institutions and senior higher education leaders who recognize that the time for change is now.

Opening the Doors: The Business Model Case for New Student Access & Success Strategies

June 15, 2022
Time: 1:00 pm - 2:00 pm

We’re excited about our next Webinar Wednesday installment on June 15!

We’ll be discussing the business model behind student access and success strategies to attract new student populations as the demographic cliff approaches. We will be joined by individuals who are already doing the hard work to address this challenge, including:

– Luke Dowden, Chief Online Learning Officer and Associate Vice Chancellor, Alamo Colleges District
– Cristen Moore, Independent Consultant to HCM Strategists

Cristen and Luke will share from their own experiences designing strategies to attract, enroll and support new student populations through transfer agreements and adult-centered enrollment approaches. This conversation will center these approaches in the current enrollment landscape, discuss the financial sustainability of these approaches, and identify the challenges and best practice in moving to action.

There are great lessons for all of higher education in their experiences, but this session is especially relevant for institutions and senior higher education looking to diversity their enrollment management strategies in response to shifting enrollment patterns.

Creating Sustainable Business Models – Acting from Urgency (Not Panic)

April 20, 2022
Time: 1:00 pm - 2:00 pm

We’re excited for our next Webinar Wednesday installment on April 20!

We’ll be discussing the critical decisions higher education must make to move toward sustainable business models. And we will be joined by individuals who are doing the hard work, including:

Charles Ambrose, Chancellor, Henderson State University
– William Reuter, Special Advisor, SUNY Erie, and previous Interim President and Chief Administrative and Financial Officer

Chuck and Bill will share from their own experiences of moving boldly to change the business model.  This conversation will touch on approaches to understand current state, best practice in moving to action, and strategies for engaging all stakeholders.  There are great lessons for all of higher education in their experiences, but this session is especially relevant for institutions and senior higher education leaders who recognize that the time for change is now.

Centering Academic Affairs in the Higher Education Business Model

February 16, 2022
Time: 1:00 pm - 2:00 pm

We’re excited for our next Webinar Wednesday installment on February 16. We’ll be discussing the importance of ensuring alignment between academic program offerings and the institutional business model. We will be joined by two individuals who have done, or are working on doing, exactly that:

– Terry Brown, Vice President of Academic Innovation and Transformation for the American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU)
– Howard Smith, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs at Pittsburg State University

Terry and Howard will share from their own experiences of understanding academic program return on investment, how the academic portfolio at institutions connects into the overall institutional strategy and business model, and the challenges around culture change that are necessary as program and portfolio management becomes more data-driven. There are great lessons for all of higher education in their experiences, but this session is especially relevant for institutions and higher education leaders wrestling with how to adjust academic offerings in response to changing student needs and shifting enrollment patterns.

Transformation at Scale

October 13, 2021
Time: 12:00 am - 12:00 am
Location: Online

We’re excited for our next Webinar Wednesday installment on October 13. We’ll be discussing Transformation at Scale and will be joined by two great leaders in the field:

– Dr. Barbara Bichelmeyer, Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor, University of Kansas
– Dr. Yasmine Ziesler, Chief Academic Officer, Vermont State Colleges System

Barbara and Yasmine will be sharing their stories of transformation across institutions and systems. There are great lessons for all of higher education in their initiatives – especially given that they were achieved in the midst of a pandemic.

Save your spot to learn more about:

– Reallocating existing resources toward new shared future vision.
– Moving toward change at scale.
– Securing faculty and staff buy in for bold change.
– Adopting an ROI approach at your own institution, with an emphasis on moving successfully from post-pandemic survival to recovery to sustainability.

Past Events

2024 EACUBO Workshop

March 5, 2024
Time: 8:30 am - 9:45 am
Location: Baltimore, Maryland

Academic Portfolio Data Frameworks – Lessons Learned at WVU

West Virginia University (WVU) recently underwent a painful but necessary process to support the health and sustainability of the institution. That process included the evaluation of the academic portfolio (programs and departments) with the goals of preserving offerings that meet student needs, achieving instructional efficiencies, delivering on student success, and supporting the long-term health of WVU.

In this panel session, Mark Gavin, Associate Provost for Academic, Budget, Facilities and Strategic Initiatives at West Virginia University, will share the process, metrics, and lessons learned at WVU. Mark will be joined by Katie Hagan, a Principal at rpk GROUP, who will help contextualize the WVU experience in the broader landscape of higher education’s challenges and opportunities.

Moderator

  • Molly Mercer, Chief Financial Officer, Pennsylvania’s State System of Higher Education

Speakers

  • Katie Hagan, Principal, rpk GROUP
  • Mark Gavin, Associate Provost for Academic, Budget, Facilities and Strategic Initiatives, West Virginia University

At rpk, Katie leads the firm’s Academic Portfolio and Resource Review projects, enabling institutions and systems to reallocate resources to meet the needs of students and employers. Katie also serves on rpk’s leadership team. Prior to joining rpk GROUP, Katie Hagan was a research associate and faculty fellow at the Edunomics Lab at Georgetown University, as well as a policy fellow for a state education advocacy organization in North Carolina.

As associate provost, Dr. Mark Gavin oversees academic budgets, facilities, and strategic initiatives for the Office of the Provost. Gavin was previously the associate dean for graduate programs, research, and executive education in the WVU College of Business and Economics. An award-winning and widely published scholar in management, he has led several professional organizations in the field and serves on the editorial board of numerous relevant journals. Prior to joining the WVU faculty in 2011, Gavin spent 16 years in the Spears School of Business at Oklahoma State University.

Note: Session time listed in ET

2024 ATD Annual Convening

February 20, 2024
Time: 10:15 am - 11:15 am
Location: Orlando, Florida

No Pain, No Gain? Student Perspectives on the Academic Credit Transfer Process

When do students learn about how their transfer credits will apply? And how much time do they spend trying to figure it out?

During this session, Donna Desrochers, Senior Associate at rpk GROUP, and Melissa Chavarria, Research Associate at the American Institutes for Research (AIR), will share findings from new research on student transfer experiences stemming from student focus groups and journey mappings.

By the end of this session, attendees will:

  • Understand the time & cost to students attempting to transfer academic credit between institutions
  • Learn about the challenges/barriers facing students as they transfer credit
  • Learn about policies & processes at 2- and 4-year institutions that could reduce students’ time and cost burdens

Attendees will be given resources to bring back to their home institutions and an opportunity during the session to engage with other attendees on best practices.

Note: Session time listed in ET

2023 APLU Annual Meeting

November 13, 2023
Time: 12:00 pm - 1:15 pm
Location: Seattle, WA

Investing in Impact with Sustainable University Business Models

Universities are continually looking for innovative ways to cut costs without sacrificing value. Developing a greater awareness of the university’s economic engines and levers under one’s control can help teams at all levels develop more sustainable business models to weather any economic storm.

In this session, Rick Staisloff, Senior Partner at rpk GROUP, will moderate a panel of seasoned leaders in higher education data and finance who have used a return on investment (ROI) lens to realign institutional resources (people, time, money) with their priorities.

Through panel case studies, attendees will gain insight into sustainable business model practices including:

  • How to develop an ROI mindset
  • The connection between student outcomes and the bottom line
  • Understanding university data and acting on data-informed decisions

Attendees will leave feeling empowered to examine their own university, college, or department with the goal of achieving greater cost-effectiveness and impact.

Moderator

  • Rick Staisloff, Founder/Senior Partner, rpk GROUP

Speakers

  • Diane Cheng, Vice President of Research & Policy, Institute for Higher Education Policy
  • Maggie Tolan, Senior Associate Vice President for Student Success, Virginia Commonwealth University
  • Jean Vock, Senior Vice President for Business Affairs & CFO, University of Nevada—Las Vegas (NACUBO Analytics Advisory Group)

Note: Session time listed in ET

2023 NWCCU Annual Conference

November 8, 2023 - November 10, 2023
Time: 6:35 pm - 7:45 pm
Location: Seattle, WA

Data-Informed Decision-Making Drives Financial Sustainability and Student Success at WSU Tri-Cities

Institutional leaders are grappling with escalating demands on their limited resources. Crafting a well-balanced budget has grown more challenging, as traditional across-the-board cost-cutting methods are no longer feasible. To reshape the organization’s cost structure and ensure long-term sustainability, institutions must begin by gaining a comprehensive understanding of their investments and assessing whether these investments yield the desired outcomes.

Kate McAteer, the Vice Chancellor for Academic and Student Affairs at WSU Tri-Cities, joins rpk’s Rilie Sibold to share lessons learned from WSU’s recent initiatives resulting in a shift towards a more sustainable business model. With support from rpk GROUP, WSU Tri-Cities developed an ROI lens and built a foundation for continued future success.

Participants will gain insight into best practices around sustainable business model development and change management, including:

  • Identifying metrics to support the understanding and monitoring of key institutional activities
  • Engaging the broader community to ground initiatives in transparency, establish a common language, and improve data quality
  • Creating or revising operating processes to improve outcomes
  • Centering student success across initiatives

Kathleen (Kate) McAteer is currently the Vice Chancellor for Academic and Student Affairs as well as an associate professor in the School of Biological Sciences at WSU Tri-Cities. She received her Ph.D. in Biochemistry from the University of South Carolina and completed postdoctoral fellowships at the University of Washington and the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory before joining the faculty at WSU. Dr McAteer attended the HERS Leadership Institute in 2019 and in 2021 completed the first AASCU Student Success Institute for Provosts, a program designed for provosts ‘to lead and implement the type of transformational change necessary to meet the evolving needs of today’s increasingly diverse student body.’

Rilie Sibold is an Associate with rpk GROUP. For more than 10 years prior to joining rpk, Rilie worked in Kansas institutions of higher education leading sustainability and innovation efforts at university, technical, and community colleges. Her work connected academic and business models through revenue and cost analysis, and an understanding of student/employer demand and markets. As an Associate, she supports our clients in fulfilling mission and student success under a sustainable financial model.

2023 CAEL Annual Conference

November 8, 2023
Time: 1:40 pm - 2:30 pm
Location: Baltimore, Maryland

Data-Informed Strategies for Expanding Adult Learner Enrollment

Enrollment challenges are a longstanding and widespread issue in higher education, prompting institutions to explore creative solutions. For community colleges in particular, a focus for driving enrollment has been adult learners.

In this session, Julia Lawton, the Director of Program Administration at Achieving the Dream, and Daniel Fogarty, the Associate Dean of Academic and Student Affairs at Fulton-Montgomery Community College, join Donna Desrochers in sharing lessons learned from adult learner enrollment strategies implemented by the 20 colleges in ATD’s Prioritizing Adult Community College Enrollment (PACCE) grant.

By the end of the session, attendees will:

  • Understand the value of a return-on-investment analysis as part of a comprehensive evaluation plan for their adult learner enrollment strategy.
  • Be able to identify the core components of how to calculate and apply a return-on-investment analysis to their adult learner enrollment strategy.
  • Be able to apply the lessons from 20 colleges’ adult learner enrollment strategies to their own institutional and community context.

During the session, attendees will have a chance to engage in an activity designed to familiarize themselves with ROI analyses and have the opportunity to discuss how they evaluate their own adult learner enrollment strategies.

2023 EACUBO Annual Meeting

October 24, 2023
Time: 10:45 am - 11:45 am
Location: Montreal, Canada

Finding the Ideal Strategic Partner – Best Practice

Higher education has historically been reluctant to consider partnerships, due in part to a belief that all academic and administrative service needs are unique to an institution. Recent enrollment and revenue challenges have made higher education leaders more open to opportunities in strategic partnerships. But what does that process look like? And how can leaders engage others to gain support?

Richard Hannmann, CFO of Excelsior University, will join rpk’s Rick Staisloff to share a case study around Excelsior University’s recent proactive strategic partnership journey in support of its growth strategy.

Attendees will learn:

  • The range of partnership options available to institutions
  • The “go/no go” milestones associated with partnership consideration
  • Common due diligence steps
  • Common pitfalls to be avoided
  • How to engage around the partnership question with boards, senior team members, and ultimately faculty and staff

Richard Staisloff is the founder and Senior Partner of rpk GROUP, a leading national consulting firm supporting colleges, universities, and other non-profits with their growth and reallocation strategies. rpk GROUP emerged from two decades of leadership positions in the higher education sector, where Mr. Staisloff developed his expertise in finance and higher education from the perspective of public and private, two- and four-year institutions, higher education commissions, and State legislatures.

Richard Hannmann has spent four decades supporting organizations as a certified public accountant, certified information systems auditor, and certified government financial manager. He currently serves as the Chief Financial Officer for Excelsior University. Prior to that, Richard served as a partner at KPMG.

2023 NACUBO Planning, Budgeting, and Analytics Forum

September 25, 2023
Time: 2:15 pm - 3:30 pm
Location: Chicago, Illinois

Leveraging Academic Data and Processes in Financial Sustainability Efforts

Finance leaders know the days of traditional budget cutting can no longer be the sole method for achieving strong institutional financial health and sustainability. Institutions must now understand their revenue and cost drivers and learn how programs and activities are generating a return on investment in terms of people, time, and money.

Robin Stanco from Washington State University Tri-Cities and Sue Callahan from Anne Arundel Community College will join rpk’s Rilie Sibold to share their success in moving institutions to an ROI lens. That success required understanding 1) student demand, 2) activity and cost drivers, and 3) net revenue. In addition, the use case examples will include the impact on institutional culture and the creation of processes to monitor return on investment over time.

Attendees will learn how to:

  • Create and track key performance indicators that support an ROI lens
  • Engage across stakeholders to create transparency, common language, and improved data and a shift to data-informed decision making
  • Impact culture and support a more sustainable business model

Rilie Sibold is an Associate with rpk GROUP. For more than 10 years prior to joining rpk, Rilie worked in Kansas institutions of higher education leading sustainability and innovation efforts at university, technical, and community colleges. Her work connected academic and business models through revenue and cost analysis, and an understanding of student/employer demand and markets. As an Associate, she supports our clients in fulfilling mission and student success under a sustainable financial model.

Susan Callahan was named Budget and Resource Planning Director at Anne Arundel Community College in February 2010. She is responsible for the development and management of the college’s operating and capital budgets, including compliance and reporting as well as strategic guidance and financial modeling to evaluate the financial viability of college programs and initiatives. Under her leadership, the budget office has undergone an operational transformation shifting from mainly transactional support to strategic direction and decision support. Ms. Callahan serves on several college-wide committees, including the Strategic Planning Council, Institutional Assessment Team, and Data Governance Council.

Robin Stanco is the Director of Finance for Washington State University Tri-Cities. After graduating from San Diego State University with a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Business Administration/Accounting, she began her career working as a CPA in San Francisco and later in New York City. She went on to work in the non-profit and governmental industries and finally landed in higher education. In 2012, when working for Franklin County, Washington, she uncovered an employee fraud that at the time, was the largest municipal fraud in the history of Washington State. She has been with Washington State University for 6 years now and enjoys every minute of it.

2023 SCUP Annual Conference

July 31, 2023
Time: 8:30 am - 9:30 am
Location: Cleveland, Ohio

Community College Integrated Planning Efforts Begin to Bear Fruit

Now more than ever, thoughtful, and actionable planning is essential for community college health. Anne Arundel Community College (AACC) recently went through an internal review and emerged with a roadmap to financial sustainability, good stewardship, and culture change.

AACC leadership will join rpk’s Mike Daly in a discussion around AACC’s recent experience implementing a multi-year journey of integrated planning, covering academic and administrative areas. What worked? What didn’t work?

Attendees will learn:

  • The initial steps in the integrated planning process
  • How to leverage existing opportunities to support the planning process
  • Why it’s necessary to prioritize inclusivity in the process
  • Strategies for measuring outcomes

Mike Daly is a Senior Associate at rpk GROUP, a leading national consulting firm supporting colleges, universities, and other non-profits with their growth and reallocation strategies. Mike joined rpk with years of experience focused on sustainable student success honed through his work in both systems and community colleges. At rpk Mike continues to support institutions across higher education with sustainability and change management.

Melissa A. Beardmore was named vice president for Learning Resources Management at Anne Arundel Community College in May 2008 after serving as acting vice president for a year. Prior to that, she was the college’s executive director of Finance. As vice president, she manages and is responsible for the college’s operating and capital budgets and provides leadership on a number of issues including the development, implementation, and assessment of the college’s strategic plan.

Dr. Tanya Millner has worked for 29 years in nearly all capacities in higher education and is currently the Provost/Vice President for Learning at Anne Arundel Community College (AACC) overseeing five schools of study. This role includes supporting strategic planning, learning advancement, research, and institutional effectiveness. She is also responsible for learning outcomes assessment and program reviews, instructional and curricular planning, faculty hiring, promotion and tenure, and budget management.

2023 AASCU Academic Affairs Summer Meeting

July 20, 2023
All-day event
Location: Baltimore, Maryland

Allocating Resources to Scale and Sustain Digital Learning and Student-Centered Initiatives

Institutional leaders considering transformational teaching and learning initiatives in a dynamically shifting higher education landscape do not lack choices. What is not always present is an intentional plan of action to realize and sustain the intended outcomes of new instructional models and student-centered programs. Widening the approach from ‘this is what we are going to do’ to include ‘here is how we are going to do it’ requires a nuanced understanding of how stakeholders, strategy, timing, resources, and metrics are interconnected.

Presenters

  • Mark McBride, Associate Director, Ithaka S+R
  • Dawn Eckenrode, Director of Professional Development Center, SUNY Fredonia
  • Seana Logsdon, Associate Provost for Student Success, Empire State College
  • Tony DeFranco, Director of Operations, SUNY OER Services, State University of New York (SUNY) System
  • Donna Desrochers, Senior Associate, rpk GROUP

Hear lessons learned about various sustainable business models behind new student-centered initiatives, including open educational resources (OER), competency-based education (CBE), and credit for prior learning (CPL). This will include cohort experiences from SUNY as well as other systems and institutions that implemented these models.

Attendees will gain a unique lens of best practices for creating sustainable student success initiatives, including:

• Understanding the business model behind new student-centered initiatives
• Prioritizing investment across various student success initiatives
• Considering, people, time, and money when evaluating initiative resource needs
• Developing frameworks and metrics that support monitoring of initiatives over time
• Use of cohort-based models to move to scale

Throughout the session, presenters will share industry use cases. In addition, participants will benefit from robust peer-to-peer learning.

2023 NASPA Annual Conference

April 4, 2023
Time: 10:00 am - 10:50 am
Location: Boston, MA

Holistic Advising Redesign: Actionable Strategies for Campus Leaders & Tools to Make the Business Case for Campus Investment

– Donna Desrochers, Senior Associate at rpk GROUP
– Lynn Brabender, Director of Student Success and Supervision at American Association of State College and Universities (AASCU)

Decisions around holistic advising redesign can require significant investment of institutional resources. It is critical for institutional leaders to consider how these investments could impact their institution’s overall business model as they make critical resource allocation decisions.

During this session, the presenters will share key principles for prioritizing and governing new advising initiatives and explain the business model case for these investments.

Attendees will learn about an advising sustainability framework to implement transformative and sustainable change, along with access to other resources and tools—including a financial model—to guide their campus redesign efforts.