This week’s Future U podcast was interesting.  I encourage a listen.  https://www.futureupodcast.com/episodes/this-president-says-tradition-shouldnt-feel-like-regulation/

Its no secret that Colleges and Universities are struggling.  The value proposition of higher education is in question.  The industry is in a difficult struggle with a political administration who is out for blood.  And even though, most of what is done in higher education is a net positive to society it is difficult to get outside of all the negative headlines.  And while this will be an unpopular opinion among my co-workers, both faculty and administrators are also part of the problem.  (Right, there are problems everywhere!)

In 2024, I wrote a book called Sustaining Colleges and Universities through Community.  It calls for regional colleges and universities turn toward their communities and built locally and regionally.  Society after the pandemic is also having a moment where we are further isolated from one another.  While generally a bad thing, it also provides an opportunity that regional colleges and universities can lean into. 

We need more connection!  Do you know of any large organization whose goal is to help people connect and learn from one another?  Whose mission is generally non-profit and helping?  That’s right!  It’s your local college!  For example, each of these places have 1000s of people who are looking for internships in the community so they can grow and help people.  We should give them what they want!

Melik Khoury seems like he would be one unpopular dude around the water cooler his college!  He made a ton of changes that cut across the grain in higher ed – his faculty meetings must have been a hoot.  I don’t know if I agree with the things he has done at Unity Environmental University but its success has been impressive.  (Don’t worry Melik, I am with you!  At least half of my peers don’t like talking to me around the water cooler either.)

One of the things they talked about in this podcast is that administrators aren’t out to win.  I just want to let you know that I am in it to win it!  I am going to shameless plug our work!

After writing a book about starting community, I felt that I had to put my money where my mouth was and started doing a couple of very aggressive things to encourage a deeper connection between my university and its community. 

• We started Cosmic Pathways!  A conference for about 200 to 250 (now) conference for high school and college students interested in physics.  It brings together members of the community to help teach students about career decisions related to the physical sciences.  It is a kick ass physics party.  The first one was amazing!  We had to do it again in New York and Chicago.  We are looking to expand too.
• We started visiting high schools, working with high school teachers, and finding ways to help them.  We visit over 15 high schools a year!  And this list is growing!  If you are a high school come work with us!
• We are starting an initiative to get high school students with quantum skills through research for the very active quantum market. 
• I started dressing up like a shark and going to talk to students about how to be successful.
• There is a despite need for physics teachers at the high school level.  With the help of APS, PhysTEC, and NSF, we have increased our production of physics teachers by a factor of four.  There is more to do on this front.

Those are the wins.  There were a lot of losses though. We are clawing our way through. It hasn’t been easy. (It’s embarrassing that your peers show up with the latest physics results on neutrinos and you are in a 6 foot tall onesie)

Melik Khoury says “The system is also not designed to really allow any change agent the longevity. And most presidents and most provosts and most senior administrators are not trained, please excuse the pun, to take a punch in the face because we are in an industry that cares about our reputation. And when we attack reputation, people stepped down.”

Innovation is hard!  You lose a lot before success happens!  You have to keep taking set backs and adapt.  It’s not easy.  Everyone including their mother (and likely your own mother) will doubt your changes will work.  There will be long nights tossing and turning worried that you made the right decision.  And don’t even get me started about the isolation.  Melik later says, “And now that I have lived through it, it is ironic that people ask me how I survived it more so than how I did it. And I don’t think it is fair to put on most employees the kind of cultural pushback, alienation, and isolation that it takes to simply try to save a soul of an institution.”  I feel you man!