Episode

4 Jun 2024 · 36 min

0:00

In this episode of Future You, hosts Michael Horn and Jeff Selingo interview two college trustees—Chris Romer of Colorado Mountain College and Jane Schecchetti of Temple University—to explore the expanding responsibilities and challenges facing governing boards in higher education. The conversation begins with a rapid inventory of the sector’s pressures—finances, enrollment declines, pandemic fallout, online learning, student debt, free‑speech controversies, and athletics—setting the stage for why trustees must be more knowledgeable and proactive than ever. The guests share how they arrived on their boards, the importance of community‑aligned missions, and concrete strategies for demonstrating institutional value to voters and legislators. Topics covered include board composition and transparency, the need for socioeconomic and demographic diversity, the delicate line between governance and management, partnership models with K‑12, industry, and other colleges, funding through property‑tax levies and bonds, lobbying, and the evolving landscape of intercollegiate athletics (name‑image‑likeness, conference realignment, athlete compensation). Throughout, the hosts stress that trustees must move beyond storytelling to concrete action, strategic planning, and clear metrics of student success, while also navigating external scrutiny from accreditors, bond‑rating agencies, and philanthropic donors. The episode concludes with reflections on mission‑drift, the possibility of institutional sunset, and the metaphor of a board flying at high altitude but occasionally descending to address specific crises.

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