Mergers and acquisitions are usually seen as bad things in higher ed. But there’s a growing sense that many colleges could benefit by teaming up, especially as the fiscal cliff means fewer potential students. Jeff and Michael continue to dive into their fascination with M&A by talking to Walter Iwanenko Jr, the president of Gannon University in Erie, Pa., about how and why the institution sought a merger with Ursuline College near Cleveland. This episode is made with support from Ascendium Education Group

“Two North Carolina universities announced a merger. Why some alumni are pushing back,” in USA Today. 

“A Midwest Merger: How Two Ohio Colleges Are Coming Together,” from Future U, season 8.

3:42 - Why Mergers and Acquisitions Are Increasingly Important In HIgher Ed

6:15 - What Led Gannon University to Look for a Merger?

9:30 - What Gannon University Hoped For in a Partner

13:01 - How Gannon University Found Ursuline College

16:21 - What’s Stopping More Colleges From Seeking Mergers?

21:36 - Learning From Other Mergers That Failed

23:04 - What Should Change to Help More Mergers Happen?

27:02 - Sponsor Break

29:00 - How to Change the Perception of M&A in Higher Ed

35:46 - Finding the Right Leadership

38:30 - What is the Trump Administration’s Stance on Making College Mergers Easier?

41:08 - Lightning Round

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Dream School: Finding the College That's Right for You

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We’re bringing back a favorite format to go behind the headlines with top beat reporters covering colleges. Our latest roundtable focuses on how the Trump administration’s many executive orders, research grant cancellations, and crackdowns on international students are changing the higher ed landscape in the U.S. and globally. Jeff and Michael are joined by reporters from The Wall Street Journal, The Boston Globe, and The Chronicle of Higher Education to hear their insights and analysis. This episode made with support from Ascendium Education Group.

0:00 - Introducing the Reporters in the Roundtable

4:10 - How the Trump Administration Picks Which Colleges to Target?

8:36 - A Shift from Ivies to SEC Schools

11:01 - How the Campus Mood Is Different at Mizzou Than at Harvard

13:05 - What’s New With International Students on Campus

14:55 - Will International Education Decline Globally?

17:17 - The Impact of International Student Decline on Colleges’ Bottom Lines

19:07 - How Much Has International Enrollment Declined?

20:55 - Will International Students Fear Returning Home for the Summer?

22:24 - Sponsor Break

22:36 - Lessons from the Santa Ono Bid to Lead University of Florida

26:50 - Divide Between Red State and Blue State Universities

29:25 - Will Trump Changes to Higher Ed Stick?

35:38 - Predicting How the Supreme Court Will Rule on Harvard Case

37:13 - Lightning Round

"Universities in Red States and Heartland May Be Winners as Ivy League Contends with Trump Onslaught," 

by Hilary Burns in The Boston Globe

“Trump Administration’s Cuts to Harvard Funding Are Unconstitutional, Judge Rules,” 

by Doug Belkin in The Wall Street Journal

"Even as Classes Begin, Some Foreign Students Are Still in Visa Limbo,” 

by Karin Fischer in The Chronicle of Higher Education.

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Dream School: Finding the College That's Right for You

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In this era of uncertainty, many parents view highly-selective colleges as the best bet for their student’s futures. In his new book just out this month, Future U co-host Jeff Selingo challenges that assumption. For this episode, Jeff moves from the host chair to being a guest to share highlights from the book, ‘Dream School.’ He talks about going beyond which college’s name looks most impressive as a bumper sticker on the family car to focusing on the quality of a college’s teaching, whether it really fits the budget, and other factors that are specific to each student. This episode is made with support from Ascendium Education Group.

Jeff Selingo’s new book, Dream School

0:00 - Intro
2:06 - Why write this book?
3:23 - The ‘New Dream School’ List
11:28 - When Mismatched Schools Cause Dropouts
14:26 - Sponsor Break
16:51 - The Importance of Making Trade-offs
18:44 - Understanding What’s Motivating Choice
19:35 - How AI is Impacting Jobs and Causing Uncertainty About College
20:56 - What Should Colleges Do?
23:23 - Giving Families ‘Social Proof’ of a Broader Group of College
25:29 - The Doom Loop of College Finances
27:56 - How Future U Shaped the Book
29:14 - How Jeff Gets the Word Out on His Book

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This summer brought no rest for college leaders. With the Trump Administration’s continuing push to reshape the college world, plus lots of announcements in Artificial Intelligence, there are many higher ed headlines to recap. So Jeff and Michael kick off season 9 with their take on the most important developments of the past couple of months. That includes Columbia University’s unprecedented settlement with the federal government, a new executive order on college admissions, and college trustees pushing for action on AI. And they unveil a new ‘speed round’ segment. This episode is made with support from Ascendium Education Group.

The Elite University Presidents Who Despise One Another: Inside the civil war between the Ivy League and the South in The Atlantic

Great Expectations, Fragile Foundations in On EdTech

1:36 - Our Summer Recap

4:09 - Behind the Scenes of Jeff’s Book Launch

8:10 - Meet the Future U Production Team

12:18 - Columbia University Settlement

21:00 - Trump’s Executive Order on Admissions

30:00 - What College Business Officers Are Talking About

34:15 - One Big Beautiful Bill’s Impact

39:30 - New ‘Lightning Round’ Segment

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Dream School: Finding the College That's Right for You

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Jeff and Michael are joined by Mushtaq Gunja, Executive Director of the Carnegie Classification Systems and Senior Vice President at ACE, to unpack the sweeping changes to the Carnegie Classifications. They explore how the new system aims to better group institutions, highlight student access and earnings, and shift incentives across funding, accountability, and rankings. The conversation dives into the implications for colleges chasing R1 status, the normative power of classifications, and whether these changes will meaningfully alter institutional behavior or simply create a new hierarchy. This episode is made with support from Ascendium Education Group and the Gates Foundation.

2025 Institutional Classifications, Carnegie Classifications of Institutions of Higher Education

2025 Research Activity Designations, Carnegie Classifications of Institutions of Higher Education

0:00 - Intro

05:50 - The Changing Higher Ed Landscape

08:06 - The Impact of the New Classifications

10:42 - Anticipating the Normative Effects

16:55 - New Funding Criteria

18:13 - Shifting to a Focus on Outcomes

21:17 - Measuring Access and Earnings

24:53 - Encouraging Good Use of the New Classifications

34:24 - Considering the Impact on Research Dollars

40:28 - Institutional Response to Access and Earnings Designations

46:30 - What This Means for Rankings

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The U.S. has a lot to learn when it comes to systematizing apprenticeship. Thankfully, there are successful international models, like Switzerland’s, that we can study. Katie Caves, the Director at Switzerland’s Center on the Economics and Management of Education and Training Systems, joins the podcast to discuss the Swiss model and what can be gleaned from it. They discuss its permeability between academic and vocational tracks, proving its value to employers, the prestige of Swiss apprenticeships, and the principles that hold across borders. This episode is made with support from Ascendium Education Group

Return on investment of apprenticeship systems for enterprises: Evidence from cost-benefit analyses

by Samuel Muehlemann & Stefan C Wolter

0:00 - Intro

3:35 - Swiss Apprenticeship 101

6:56 - Path Selection and Funding

13:46 - The Status of Apprenticeship in Switzerland

18:58 - Borrowing Across Borders

25:15 - The ROI to Employers

29:47 - Evaluating Indiana’s Apprenticeship Model

33:45 - Imbuing Prestige in American Apprenticeship

38:49 - Striking the Balance

43:01 - The Influence of Accountability

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What does a community college in Idaho have to do with mounting economic tensions between the U.S. and China? A lot, actually. 

On this episode of Future U., Michael and Jeff dive into what the CHIPS and Science Act—the federal spending package designed to reduce the United States’ reliance on foreign manufacturers for microchips and other advanced technologies—means for a segment of American postsecondary institutions that’s often forgotten in these conversations: community colleges. They talk with nonprofit and government leaders about how the CHIPS supports the education and training of a high tech workforce. They then go deep with the team at the College of Western Idaho to get a view of how they are developing these programs in collaboration with their corporate partner, Micron. This episode is sponsored by Ascendium Education Group.

In this special bonus episode of Future U, Michael Horn moderates a panel discussion on the future of work and learning in the age of AI. Recorded at a Western Governors University event in Boston, the conversation features insights from industry leaders across technology, consulting, and higher education.

Panelists Paul Bingham (WGU), Will Bass (formerly of Comcast), Kara Kara Wieckowski (Accenture), and Wayne Duso (former VP at AWS) explore the transformative impact of AI on workforce development, talent acquisition, and educational models. They discuss whether we should view AI as revolutionary like the smartphone or complementary like the microwave, share strategies for upskilling at both individual and organizational levels, and examine innovative approaches to virtual internships and experiential learning.

Whether you're an educator, administrator, business leader, or student contemplating your career path, this episode provides valuable insights on navigating the rapidly evolving intersection of work, technology, and education.

Chapters

0:00 - Introduction

2:34 - AI Perspectives: Optimism vs. Concerns

6:28 - The Microwave vs. Smartphone Analogy

9:09 - AI as an Accelerant of Change

12:29 - Job Anxiety and Workforce Evolution

21:22 - Rethinking Talent Acquisition and Development

23:25 - Creating a Holistic Talent Approach

24:41 - Accenture's AI Talent Strategy

27:29 - The Bottom-Up vs. Top-Down Approach

33:58 - Learning at the Speed of Human Capacity

37:23 - Skill Forward: Balancing Organization and Individual Growth

40:45 - Learning Models for Different Types of Adopters

43:39 - On-the-Job Training and Strategic Learning

47:55 - The Challenge of Finding Time to Learn

53:04 - Virtual Experiences and the Future of Internships
 

Further Reading

"AI Skills Fundamentals Certificate" - Western Governors University

WGU's certificate program designed to help professionals develop foundational AI knowledge and skills applicable across various industries, supporting both personal growth and organizational innovation.

"AI Won't Replace Humans—But Humans With AI Will Replace Humans Without AI" - Harvard Business Review

An insightful article by Harvard professor Karim Lakhani explaining how AI will lower the cost of cognition and why business leaders must experiment with AI applications for all employees, not just tech workers.

"The Upskilling Imperative: Required at Scale for the Future of Work" - McKinsey

Research highlighting how companies can take a larger role in upskilling employees by eliminating barriers of time and cost, with specific strategies for developing critical workforce capabilities.

"ChatGPT is Going to Change Education, Not Destroy It" - MIT Technology Review

An examination of how AI tools like ChatGPT are being reevaluated by educators as potential classroom aids rather than threats, with practical examples of implementation across educational settings.

"The Future of Skills: Employment in 2030" - Pearson

A comprehensive research report that identifies which occupations and skills are likely to be in demand by 2030, considering seven megatrends including technological change, globalization, and demographic shifts.

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While college-going rates have increased over recent decades, completion rates have hardly budged. On this episode, Michael and Jeff sit down with one entrepreneur working to change that. Mike Larsson is the co-founder and CEO of Duet, an organization collaborating with an online university to provide on-the-ground coaching and physical space for students. They discuss the role wraparound supports play in supporting more students towards graduation, the keys to reengaging students who have stopped out, the nationwide spread of hybrid models like Duet’s, and more.

College Reimagined by Jon Gabrieli et al.

0:00 - Intro

02:12 - The Founding Story of Duet

08:53 - Reaching Students with “Some College No Degree”

11:23 - A Personal Trainer for College

13:17 - Duet’s Outcomes

17:07 - “The Hard Policy Answer”

21:00 - The Growth of Hybrid College

24:39 - Affordability, Flexibility, and Disruption

29:46 - Leveraging Public-Private Partnerships to Better Serve Adult Learners

33:26 - Improving the Outcomes of Community Colleges

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As colleges navigate increasing financial pressure, many struggle to balance mission with sustainability. In this episode, Jeff and Michael welcome Rick Staisloff, founder of rpk GROUP, for a crash course in how college budgets really work. From centralized vs. decentralized models to the challenges of tuition discounting, Rick breaks down the major drivers of revenue and expense in higher ed. He also highlights why better business intelligence, clearer accountability, and a shift toward ROI thinking are essential for financial sustainability. Whether you're a board member or just curious, this episode offers practical insight into what’s working—and what’s not—in college budgeting. This episode is made with support from Ascendium Education Group and the Gates Foundation.

0:00 - Intro

03:45 - How colleges put together their budgets

9:05 - Implementation challenges and best practices

15:04 - Non-tuition revenue sources

26:21 - Cost drivers

29:41 - Solving the “Financial Bucket Problem”

35:41 - Deferred maintenance

38:11 - Shifting to an ROI mindset

41:04 - The levers to pull

43:14 - On the margins

46:44 - College cash sources

49:03 - Our most promising strategies

RPK Group Official Website

Access the official online presence of RPK Group, the consulting firm founded by episode guest Rick Staisloff. This resource provides further information regarding their advisory services in higher education finance and the development of sustainable institutional business models.

Responsibility Centered Management (RCM) Manual - Kent State University

This document offers a comprehensive exposition of Responsibility Centered Management (RCM), a decentralized budgetary framework prevalent within higher education institutions. Review for detailed insight into its operational principles and implementation methodologies.

Tuition Discounting Hits Another High - Inside Higher Ed

Consult this article for current data and analysis pertaining to the escalating rates of tuition discounting at private nonprofit colleges. The content elucidates the impact of institutional financial aid on net tuition revenue, a critical financial metric discussed herein.

A National Study of Capital Infrastructure at Colleges and Schools of Agriculture | APLU

This report details the substantial and accumulating challenges of deferred maintenance across tertiary education establishments. It provides quantitative data and analytical perspectives on infrastructure-related financial burdens as referenced by Mr. Staisloff.

Understanding Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) Systems in EdTech - Ellucian

This resource provides an overview of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems, elaborating on their function as integrated platforms for managing administrative and academic operations. It highlights their utility in enhancing institutional efficiency, business intelligence, and data-driven strategic planning within higher education.

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