Recorded on-site in Austin, this cross-conversation episode (in partnership with RTM Business Group’s Inside Innovation) brings together fast takes from the Fall Higher Education CIO Congress. We open with RTM’s Mica Spanos on how listening to practitioners—and getting them into the same room—drives a program that’s useful in a world that never quite calms down. Cole McFarren (University of Arizona Global Campus) shares the online-only perspective: the surprising value of “out-of-scope” sessions and the energy that comes from meeting peers face-to-face.
Then Scott Smith (Director of Digital & Instructional Innovation) talks about blending IT with pedagogy, why “ready for prime time” matters, and the power of making technologists sit in classes (and instructional folks shadow techs). Dr. Angela Camaille (Delgado Community College) dives into professional development, authenticity, and the leadership strength of saying “I don’t know.” We close with Jess Awtrey  (SVP, Boodleox) on AI infrastructure built for higher ed, governance in the “wild-west” phase, and Coach Mode as scaffolding for AI literacy.

Topics Discussed

• Why smaller, selective convenings (like RTM) produce higher-signal conversations
• Programming by listening: building agendas around real campus problems
• Online-only realities: what transfers (and what doesn’t) from brick-and-mortar
• “Ready for prime time”: how one failed demo collapses adoption
• Cross-shadowing: tech staff in classrooms, instructional staff with technicians
• Professional development as table stakes, not a nice-to-have
• Authentic leadership: psychological safety and the value of “I don’t know”
• Community college lens: pedagogy for everyone, not just the already-prepared
• AI infrastructure vs. a single tool: governance, privacy, equitable access
• Coach Mode and AI literacy: meeting users where they are and leveling them up

• Mica Spanos — LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/mica-spanos-b980a81b0/
• Cole McFarrin — LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cole-mcfarren-7913b074/
• Scott Smith LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/scottssmith/
• Dr. Angela Camaille— LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/angela-camaille-6823969a/
• Jess Awtrey  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jess-awtrey-4ba9a95/

Connect with Ryan
@Ryan_A_Gray
https://www.linkedin.com/in/ryanagray
[email protected]

Voiceover by Chris Dechter

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