In Part 3 of this Pulse Check series, Dave Hunt sits down with Lori Mazor—architect turned author, innovator, and CEO of Synthetivity—to explore how artificial intelligence is reshaping creativity. Lori, author of TEMPERATURE, Creativity, and the Age of AI, breaks down how thinking differently about creativity, control, and collaboration with AI can lead to more human-centered, purpose-driven innovation. Whether you're a skeptic or an AI evangelist, this conversation will challenge your assumptions and reframe your role in a future shaped by intelligent tools. Perfect for creative professionals, higher ed leaders, and AI-curious marketers, this episode highlights how AI can be a partner in expanding—not replacing—our humanity.

Guest Name: Lori Mazor, bestselling author and CEO of SYNTHETIVITY

Guest Social: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorimazor/

Guest Bio: Lori is bestselling author of TEMPERATURE: Creativity in the Age of AI, and is a leading voice in artificial intelligence and creativity. She began her career as an architect focusing on cultural and academic projects, then quickly rose to become the first vice president for Planning and Design at New York University.

Today, she’s the CEO of SYNTHETIVITY, where she develops and delivers groundbreaking educational programs that equip leaders and creatives with hands-on skills to integrate AI into their workflows.

Through her educational programs and Humans of AI newsletter, she fosters a vibrant community of professionals exploring the impact of AI on society and creativity. Lori is passionate about leveraging AI tools to help people become better humans, ensuring that technology enhances our humanity rather than diminishes it.

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Connect With Our Host:
Mallory Willsea 
https://www.linkedin.com/in/mallorywillsea/
https://twitter.com/mallorywillsea

About The Enrollify Podcast Network:
The Higher Ed Pulse is a part of the Enrollify Podcast Network. If you like this podcast, chances are you’ll like other Enrollify shows too!

Enrollify is made possible by Element451 — The AI Workforce Platform for Higher Ed. Learn more at element451.com.

In this episode of Higher Ed Pulse, host Mallory Willsea sits down with Devin Purgason, AVP of Student Experience Marketing and Outreach at Forsyth Technical Community College, to dive into the behind-the-scenes of deploying AI on campus. From building better knowledge bases to turning karaoke into community-building, Devin shares key lessons from the 2024 Engage Summit, his takeaways as an AMA Symposium planning committee member, and his vision for a more human-centered, tech-enabled future in higher ed.

If you're an enrollment marketer exploring AI in higher education or seeking practical student success strategies, this episode is packed with insights and inspiration.

Related Links: 
‍Register for the 2025 AMA Symposium for the Marketing of Higher Education
Watch all the sessions from the 2025 Engage Summit!

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Connect With Our Host:
Mallory Willsea 
https://www.linkedin.com/in/mallorywillsea/
https://twitter.com/mallorywillsea

About The Enrollify Podcast Network:
The Higher Ed Pulse is a part of the Enrollify Podcast Network. If you like this podcast, chances are you’ll like other Enrollify shows too!

Enrollify is made possible by Element451 — The AI Workforce Platform for Higher Ed. Learn more at element451.com.

In Part 2 of this Pulse Check series, Dave Hunt sits down with Nick Gyani, Head of Higher Ed Sales at Canva, to explore how Canva is empowering campus marketers and creative teams through AI-driven tools and collaborative design workflows. Nick shares how Canva is not just simplifying visual communication but transforming the way higher ed institutions work—giving time back to creative pros and empowering non-designers to stay on brand. This is a must-listen for anyone curious about AI in higher education and what the future of design and content creation looks like on campus.

Guest Name: Nick Gyani, Head of Higher Ed Sales, Canva

Guest Social: LinkedIn

Guest Bio: Nick Gyani currently leads Higher Ed sales for Canva.  Originally from New York City, he is currently based in Austin, Texas.  He has been with Canva for about 5 years and was one of the founding members of the Canva Enterprise team back in 2020.  His background is in a wide range of industries, but for the past 9 years, he has been focused on driving growth in high performing SAAS companies.  Nick is passionate about empowering educators and students through visual communication.  Outside of work, Nick enjoys spending time with his wife and 2 year old daughter, trying new restaurants in the Austin food scene, and playing golf.

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Connect With Our Host:
Mallory Willsea 
https://www.linkedin.com/in/mallorywillsea/
https://twitter.com/mallorywillsea

About The Enrollify Podcast Network:
The Higher Ed Pulse is a part of the Enrollify Podcast Network. If you like this podcast, chances are you’ll like other Enrollify shows too!

Enrollify is made possible by Element451 — The AI Workforce Platform for Higher Ed. Learn more at element451.com.

Recorded live at the CASE Summit, host Carrie Phillips welcomes Becca Altimer to unpack powerful insights from the conference. Together, they explore the importance of collaboration across campus units, the emotional core of advancement work, and how institutions can cultivate courage and connection in uncertain times. Whether you're in enrollment, admissions, or advancement, this episode offers actionable takeaways and fresh perspectives to inspire your strategy.

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Connect With Our Host:
Mallory Willsea 
https://www.linkedin.com/in/mallorywillsea/
https://twitter.com/mallorywillsea

About The Enrollify Podcast Network:
The Higher Ed Pulse is a part of the Enrollify Podcast Network. If you like this podcast, chances are you’ll like other Enrollify shows too!

Enrollify is made possible by Element451 — The AI Workforce Platform for Higher Ed. Learn more at element451.com.

In this episode of Higher Ed Pulse, host Mallory Willsea sits down with Kyle James (again!) to tackle the deep divide between how startups and higher ed institutions adopt and implement AI. This conversation dives into why experimentation, failure, and iteration are the lifeblood of startup growth—and how higher ed can start borrowing from that playbook. From low-code/no-code AI tools to agile workflows and international student personalization, this episode is packed with actionable insights that challenge the higher ed status quo.

Related Articles:
AI Translation Platform Article: https://3sixtyinsights.com/from-afterthought-to-strategic-superpower-ais-expanding-role-in-translation-and-gtm/   
Example - AI Agents to write Free Resources for Users: https://www.soundgtm.com/playbooks-and-agents  
Kate Reed Interview - "No Code Builder": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y3iQjMiQILA&list=PLd1KZs09PNgQZLpSDwUwJIcdqtCT9g5r9

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Connect With Our Host:
Mallory Willsea 
https://www.linkedin.com/in/mallorywillsea/
https://twitter.com/mallorywillsea

About The Enrollify Podcast Network:
The Higher Ed Pulse is a part of the Enrollify Podcast Network. If you like this podcast, chances are you’ll like other Enrollify shows too!

Enrollify is made possible by Element451 — The AI Workforce Platform for Higher Ed. Learn more at element451.com.

In the premiere episode of this new Pulse Check series, Ctrl + Create: AI for Creatives, host Dave Hunt sits down with Matt Owens, Co-founder and Chief Design and Innovation Officer at Athletics. With decades of experience in design, branding, and demystifying new tools, Matt shares how his team is using AI to push creative boundaries, streamline workflows, and preserve the magic of craft. This episode explores how creative studios—and higher ed marketers—can embrace AI with curiosity and confidence, not fear.

Guest Name: Matt Owens, Chief Design and Innovation Officer & Founding Partner, Athletics - http://athleticsnyc.com

Guest Socials: 
https://www.linkedin.com/in/volumeone/
https://www.instagram.com/mattvolumeone

Guest Bio: Matt Owens is a New York-based designer, creative director, founder, and entrepreneur, and the author of the book A Visible Distance: Craft, Creativity, and the Business of Design, published by Set Margins. With 25 years of experience across all facets of creative practice, Matt works with ambitious leaders, strategists, designers, creative technologists, and marketers to bring rich multi-faceted creative ideas and experiences to life.

A Texas native, Matt studied graphic design at the University of Texas at Austin and received a Master’s Degree in graphic design from Cranbrook Academy of Art. He is a founding partner of Athletics, a brand innovation studio based in New York City, and serves as Chief Design and Innovation Officer. Founded in 2004, Athletics has grown through a commitment to design innovation and an ability to work with clients such as Major League Soccer, IBM, Citrix, Google, Amazon, and Square to meet the challenges of contemporary brand-building.

Matt has helped teams leverage new tools and processes across disciplines and led projects for clients including Abbott, NYU, XQ, Guild, The Pulitzer Prizes, and Culligan. He has spoken internationally, and his work has been recognized by the Art Directors Club, The American Center for Design, and the AIGA. His thought leadership has been published in Print Magazine, Fast Company, Ad Week, and AdAge. His early experimental design work at volumeone.com was selected to be in SFMoMA’s permanent collection. 

In his spare time, Matt can be found writing about design and entrepreneurship on Substack and Medium, experimenting in Cinema 4D, and developing new ventures like Kingston Standard and the creative and strategic foresight collective Preseason.

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Connect With Our Host:
Mallory Willsea 
https://www.linkedin.com/in/mallorywillsea/
https://twitter.com/mallorywillsea

About The Enrollify Podcast Network:
The Higher Ed Pulse is a part of the Enrollify Podcast Network. If you like this podcast, chances are you’ll like other Enrollify shows too!

Enrollify is made possible by Element451 — The AI Workforce Platform for Higher Ed. Learn more at element451.com.

Erin reconnects with Savanna Mcdede of Element451 to unpack one of the most buzzed-about sessions from the 2024 Engage Summit. Inspired by the powerful talk from Tom Andriola (UC Irvine) and Gary Moser (California Community Colleges), the conversation explores how higher ed institutions can move from AI pilots to true, strategic transformation. If you’ve ever asked, “But how do we actually do this AI thing?”, this is the episode you’ve been waiting for.

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Connect With Our Host:
Mallory Willsea 
https://www.linkedin.com/in/mallorywillsea/
https://twitter.com/mallorywillsea

About The Enrollify Podcast Network:
The Higher Ed Pulse is a part of the Enrollify Podcast Network. If you like this podcast, chances are you’ll like other Enrollify shows too!

Enrollify is made possible by Element451 — The AI Workforce Platform for Higher Ed. Learn more at element451.com.

Recorded live at Engage 2025, host Carrie Phillips sits down with Katy Campbell of VisionPoint Marketing for a quick chat about how effective leadership intersects with AI innovation in higher ed. Together, they explore how human-centered leadership, strategic prioritization, and intentional tech adoption can help institutions confidently navigate the fast-evolving digital landscape. If you're leading a team through change, this episode is your roadmap.

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Connect With Our Host:
Mallory Willsea 
https://www.linkedin.com/in/mallorywillsea/
https://twitter.com/mallorywillsea

About The Enrollify Podcast Network:
The Higher Ed Pulse is a part of the Enrollify Podcast Network. If you like this podcast, chances are you’ll like other Enrollify shows too!

Enrollify is made possible by Element451 — The AI Workforce Platform for Higher Ed. Learn more at element451.com.

Mallory Willsea sits down with Kyle James — startup founder, product leader, and former college webmaster — to explore how AI is fundamentally reshaping the way business gets done. This high-energy conversation challenges higher ed professionals to ditch the pilot phase and start thinking like a startup. From automated call transcripts to no-code development and the future of white-collar work, this is a must-listen for anyone serious about innovation in higher education.

Related Articles: 
How AI Is Helping Students Find the Right College
How Babson College went all-in on AI in higher education

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Connect With Our Host:
Mallory Willsea 
https://www.linkedin.com/in/mallorywillsea/
https://twitter.com/mallorywillsea

About The Enrollify Podcast Network:
The Higher Ed Pulse is a part of the Enrollify Podcast Network. If you like this podcast, chances are you’ll like other Enrollify shows too!

Enrollify is made possible by Element451 — The AI Workforce Platform for Higher Ed. Learn more at element451.com.

In this special bonus episode of The Pulse from the Engage Summit, host Erin sits down with Kylee Beasley, a Content Strategist at Southeast Missouri State University, to unpack her very first conference experience at Engage. As a newcomer to both higher ed and conferences, Kylee offers a refreshing, real-time perspective on the energy, insights, and takeaways that make Engage a standout event. From AI in higher education to breaking silos in communication teams, this conversation is packed with inspiration for anyone looking to say "yes" to bold professional growth.

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Connect With Our Host:
Mallory Willsea 
https://www.linkedin.com/in/mallorywillsea/
https://twitter.com/mallorywillsea

About The Enrollify Podcast Network:
The Higher Ed Pulse is a part of the Enrollify Podcast Network. If you like this podcast, chances are you’ll like other Enrollify shows too!

Enrollify is made possible by Element451 — The AI Workforce Platform for Higher Ed. Learn more at element451.com.