Understanding Transformation

Operating Capacities

Capacities reflect critical functions that support student-facing improvements.  Broadly, they scaffold the institution’s abilities to plan, analyze, make data informed decisions, and provide leadership in the context of the institution’s mission.

News from the field


Structure services for students. Institutions adjust their operating models to deliver effective and efficient student-focused support and services.

Based on a collection of observed practices—specific to a student-focused operating model—from some of the Frontier Set institutions, we’ve compiled some questions to consider for you and your team as prompts for discussion and inspiration.

Frontier Set Case Studies

Resources

Harvard Institutes for Higher Education (HIHE)

The Harvard Institutes for Higher Education (HIHE) offers comprehensive leadership development programs designed for higher education administrators — from directors, department heads, and deans, to vice presidents, provosts, and presidents. At HIHE, leaders come together to speak openly, reflect honestly, and hone leadership skills and strategies with the support of accomplished peers and faculty experts.


Establish team and values. Leadership stability aligned with a culture of empowerment across all levels is foundational to an institution’s ability to improve student success through institutional transformation.

Based on a collection of observed practices—specific to leadership & culture—from some of the Frontier Set institutions, we’ve compiled some questions to consider for you and your team as prompts for discussion and inspiration.

Frontier Set Case Studies

Resources

American Council on Education (ACE)

The American Council on Education (ACE) is a membership organization that mobilizes the higher education community to shape effective public policy and foster innovative, high-quality practice. It is the only major higher education association to represent all types of U.S. accredited, degree-granting institutions: two-year and four-year, public and private—a diverse membership of more than 1,700 colleges and universities. ACE convenes, organizes, mobilizes, and leads advocacy efforts that shape effective public policy and help colleges and universities best serve their students, their communities, and the wider public good. It helps institutions build their capacity through high-quality innovation. It works to improve equity, expand access to colleges and universities, and diversify the higher education leadership pipeline.


Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges (AGB)

The Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges (AGB) is the premier membership organization that strengthens higher education governing boards and the strategic roles they serve within their organizations. Through our vast library of resources, educational events, and consulting services, and with more than 100 years of experience, we empower 40,000 AGB members from more than 2,000 institutions and foundations to navigate complex issues, implement leading practices, streamline operations, and govern with confidence. AGB is the trusted resource for board members, chief executives, and key administrators on higher education governance and leadership.


Harvard Institutes for Higher Education (HIHE)

The Harvard Institutes for Higher Education (HIHE) offers comprehensive leadership development programs designed for higher education administrators — from directors, department heads, and deans, to vice presidents, provosts, and presidents. At HIHE, leaders come together to speak openly, reflect honestly, and hone leadership skills and strategies with the support of accomplished peers and faculty experts.


National Center for Institutional Diversity U-M NCID

The University of Michigan National Center for Institutional Diversity (U-M NCID) empowers people and institutions to leverage knowledge and skills around the benefits, challenges, and opportunities of diversity in order to create a truly equitable and inclusive society. They are building intergenerational communities of scholars and leaders to integrate evidence-based approaches in addressing contemporary issues in a diverse society.


Pullias Center for Higher Education – Change Leadership Toolkit

The world’s leading research center on student access and success in higher education, the Pullias Center at the University of Southern California’s (USC) Rossier School of Education is focused on promoting equity in higher education, advancing innovative, scalable solutions to improve college outcomes for underserved students, and enhancing the performance of postsecondary institutions. The Change Leadership Toolkit for Advancing Systemic Change in Higher Education project aims to develop a set of tools and resources to help campus leaders and teams develop strategies and leadership competencies that contribute to implementing, scaling and sustaining campus systemic change and transformation initiatives.


Manage change. Implementing a student success vision requires clear, strategic, and multi-stage communications and change-management planning to meaningfully engage all stakeholders.

Based on a collection of observed practices—specific to communications & engagement—from some of the Frontier Set institutions, we’ve compiled some questions to consider for you and your team as prompts for discussion and inspiration.

Frontier Set Case Studies


Develop and manage leaders. Institutions recognize the link between developing, managing, and promoting their talent as foundational to transforming student success.

Based on a collection of observed practices—specific to talent—from some of the Frontier Set institutions, we’ve compiled some questions to consider for you and your team as prompts for discussion and inspiration.


Collaborate with others. Institutions navigate “doing more with less” by seeking partnerships with K-12 schools, social service agencies, and other workforce developers.

Based on a collection of observed practices—specific to strategic partnerships—from some of the Frontier Set institutions, we’ve compiled some questions to consider for you and your team as prompts for discussion and inspiration.

Frontier Set Case Studies


Operating capacity in policy is defined in two distinct areas – Institutional Policy and State Policy.

Institutional Policy: Align procedures with student success. Changing institutional policies, processes, and procedures to support, sustain, and institutionalize efforts to improve student success and close equity gaps.

State Policy: Forge partnerships.  Engaging with local, state, and national policymakers and serving as educational influencers and advisers provides institutions with another channel to support transformation.

Based on a collection of observed practices—specific to state policy—from some of the Frontier Set institutions, we’ve compiled some questions to consider for you and your team as prompts for discussion and inspiration.

Frontier Set Case Studies

Resources – Institutional Policy

Student-Ready Strategies

Student-Ready Strategies partners, plans, and problem-solves with colleges and universities as they evolve to ensure the success of diverse students with complex lives. It provides highly customized, hands-on technical assistance and capacity support for student-ready transformation. Within Higher Endeavor, SRS helps institutions identify policies that create barriers for students, then assists in revising those policies or creating new ones to ensure an equitable and sustainable policy environment.


Make data-informed decisions. As a strategic partner to transformation, IR leads and supports data analysis providing quantitative evidence for robust decision-making.

Based on a collection of observed practices—specific to institutional research & data—from some of the Frontier Set institutions, we’ve compiled some questions to consider for you and your team as prompts for discussion and inspiration.

Frontier Set Case Studies

Resources

Association for Institutional Research

AIR empowers higher education professionals to use data, information, and analytics in ways that are effective, ethical, and equitable. AIR supports data-informed decision making that amplifies student and institutional success. AIR advances the professional growth, skill development, and scholarship of professionals in institutional research and other related fields, including institutional effectiveness, assessment, strategic analytics, business intelligence, and more.


Invest in software and hardware. IT enables support for transformation functions such as early alerts, pathways, and data analysis, as well as collaboration, including between academic and student services.

Based on a collection of observed practices—specific to information technology—from some of the Frontier Set institutions, we’ve compiled some questions to consider for you and your team as prompts for discussion and inspiration.

Resources

The Ada Center

The Ada Center helps higher education leaders navigate technology and business process decisions in an increasingly complex environment. It combines software and higher education expertise to support institution and system leaders in planning for and making the most of their technology investments, so that they reach their student success and equity goals.