HRW Higher Ground

HRW's John Graff, Scott Roberts, and members of the SUNY ARRIVE Center team, Joseph Storch, Roma Shah, and Morgan Clifford, discuss the development and use of the Sexual and Interpersonal Violence Prevention and Response Course (SPARC). This program assists colleges and universities in training students in the prevention of sexual, interpersonal and related violence through interactive measures (such as providing QR codes around campus that open up to TikTok-like informational videos).

Learn more about SUNY SPARC at https://system.suny.edu/sparc/ 

Learn more about The ARRIVE Center at https://www.suny.edu/arrive 

Life for young adults was already complicated before the pandemic.  Cell phones, tablets, video gaming systems, streaming videos, and helicopter – no, snowplow – parents removing character building adversity from the paths of their children.  Then the pandemic hit, requiring an internal grit to work through it – the type of grit usually developed as a result of having to deal with the same adversity cleared by the snowplow. 

Julie Lythcott-Haims is a New York Times bestselling author and former dean of freshmen at Stanford University who joins John for a candid discussion as part of Higher Ground's year-long focus on parenting impacts upon higher education.  John and Julie discuss life, leadership, and development lessons learned from Julie’s latest book Your Turn:  How to Be an Adult.  Julie’s book reads like a deep and warm conversation between friends, full of anecdotes reflecting insights into the mind of today’s young adult generation that every parent and every educator needs to read. 

A humble thanks to Julie for her work in this area and for her time in talking with us. Order her new book here.

In our second episode of the year, John talks about the many difficult challenges facing higher ed leadership in 2021.  The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, social justice and political issues, and the pressure of social media watching it all.  John comments on the critical necessity of leadership optimism tempered with realism, resilience, and risk taking focused on re-orienting toward the common goal of educating to promote positive growth in society.  To illustrate the point, John discusses the Stockdale Paradox and describes the way a kind man, Kenneth, works to lead people toward a more positive and kinder influence through his optimism, resilience, and ‘pay it forward mentality.’

 Media Mentions:

• N. Onishi, Will American Ideas Tear France Apart? Some of Its Leaders Think So, New York Times (Feb. 9, 2021, updated Feb. 10, 2021) https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/09/world/europe/france-threat-american-universities.html
• Live Coronavirus Updates: Here’s the Latest, The Chronicle of Higher Education, Feb. 10, 2021 https://www.chronicle.com/article/live-coronavirus-updates-heres-the-latest
• D. Collier, et al, We Want You Back: Uncovering the Influences on In-Person Instructional operations in Fall 2020, Feb. 2021 https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3778772
• B. Groysberg and R. Abrahams, What the Stockdale Paradox Tells Us About Crisis Leadership, Harvard Business School, Aug. 17, 2020 https://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/what-the-stockdale-paradox-tells-us-about-crisis-leadership

Happy New Year! John and Erinn welcome HRW colleagues Pete Moser, Kathleen Berney and Mark Macchi for an important discussion on COVID-19 vaccine rollout updates, the state of the law on mandatory vaccinations, and things employers absolutely need to be thinking about while deciding whether to mandate vaccines.  Though this may be a higher ed podcast, the mandatory vaccine issue applies to every business and organization, so  every employer should listen.  And for those in law school thinking about working in the Title IX space, John takes a question from a listener and offers some on-the-spot career advice.

John, Erinn, and Scott welcome The Wall Street Journal reporter Melissa Korn, co-author of the book Unacceptable: Privilege, Deceit & the Making of the College Admissions ScandaI, for an in-depth look at how criminal intent, cracks in the college recruiting and admissions process, parenting styles, egos, and entitlement all intersected to create the perfect storm for a near perfect scam. During the year following news of the Varsity Blues scandal breaking, Melissa and Jennifer meticulously researched the evolution of the scheme and the people who participated in it. The authors’ thoughtful study of parental motives and insecurities results in a captivating tale that once picked up, cannot be put down.

Unacceptable is a ‘must read’ for all parents and college/university leaders and is available on the Penguin Random House website at: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/622985/unacceptable-by-melissa-korn-and-jennifer-levitz/.

John and Scott welcome Joe Storch and Elizabeth Brady for a discussion of SUNY’s innovative collaboration with Ramapo College to develop a highly efficient approach to training Clery Act campus security authorities.  Joe and Elizabeth talk about the big contribution RAPID aims to make in the Clery compliance realm, it’s very low cost – FREE – and its customization features. We also talk about SUNY Student Conduct Institute (SCI) offerings, its rapid growth, and its impact on schools.

Learn more about SUNY SCI at https://system.suny.edu/sci/

In this special pre-holiday season solo episode, John breaks down Center for Disease Control (CDC) guidance on Thanksgiving travel and gatherings in light of a surge in college and university student travel this week.  John points out some behavioral realities as compared to CDC recommendations, and discusses what non-compliance while on holiday means for higher ed going forward. 

He also talks about the importance of assessing how higher ed handled the first wave of COVID during the spring, and the need for incorporating hard learned lessons into forward surge planning.  John walks listeners through the framework for really understanding the effectiveness of an institution’s response to the pandemic, and discusses his partnering with The Hawthorn Group on a formal study of the quality of institution pandemic responses.  

Finally, John spends a few minutes on gratitude.  A big “thank you” to all who spend time listening with us, we appreciate you! 

Media mentions:

• CDC Guidance on Holiday Celebrations and Small Gatherings https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/daily-life-coping/holidays.html

John, and Scott welcome Sarah Brown, Senior Reporter at The Chronicle of Higher Education (https://bit.ly/3nEw1gq ) for some decompression after a long, long year in higher ed world. A ton of good laughs, a little musical deep dive, and of course, some higher ed chat. Sarah talks about her lifelong connection to higher ed, how she landed on covering higher ed for The Chronicle, and some of the big issues facing the industry at the end of 2020. Sarah shares her incredible insight on student mental health and developmental challenges, the impact of student reliance on digital technology and social media, the complexity of student life today, balance and nuance in reporting, Title IX process expectations and communication, and the tension between compliance and culture. We are big Sarah Brown fans here at Higher Ground, and we appreciate her journalistic integrity and style and her contributions to an outstanding episode!  

Some of Sarah’s recent higher ed coverage – all of them worth a read:

• Sarah Brown (Nov. 10, 2020). Meet Covid-19’s Freshman. The Chronicle of Higher Education available at https://bit.ly/3fdEeVC
• Sarah Brown (Nov. 2, 2020). Trump’s 2016 Victory Sparked Unrest on College Campuses. What Might 2020 Bring? The Chronicle of Higher Education available at https://bit.ly/38YCheE 
• Sarah Brown (Oct. 13, 2020). Did the Pandemic Worsen the Campus Mental-Health Crisis? Maybe Not, Data Show. The Chronicle of Higher Education available at https://bit.ly/2ISjQO3 
• Sarah Brown (Oct. 9, 2020). How Colleges Can Ease Students’ Fear and Anxiety in Quarantine. The Chronicle of Higher Education available at https://bit.ly/3pJ2fZv 
• Sarah Brown (Sept. 27, 2020). The Trump Administration Says Diversity Training Can Be Harmful. What Does the Research Say? The Chronicle of Higher Education available at https://bit.ly/3ffx3MD 
• Sarah Brown (Aug. 13, 2020). Colleges Had 3 Months to Overhaul Sexual-Misconduct Policies. Now They’re Scrambling. The Chronicle of Higher Education available at https://bit.ly/36Ln6CY 

Special Mentions:

• John’s favorite new pastime: checking Twitter every night to see how many more schools have joined @SUNYSCI https://system.suny.edu/sci/ 
• Georgetown University Professor Cal Newport’s outstanding book Digital Minimalism: Choosing a Focused Life in a Noisy World https://www.calnewport.com/books/digital-minimalism/

Political strategist and public relations expert John Ashford of The Hawthorn Group in Alexandria, Virginia joins John and Scott for some post-election analysis and discussion about how the election outcome will impact higher ed going forward.  John Ashford helps us understand what Biden administration priorities for the education industry look like,  where the traditional four-year school fits – or doesn’t fit – within those priorities, and political strategies schools need to be thinking about in the face of increasing strain on the industry due to the COVID-19 pandemic and social concerns.  John discusses the critical importance of studying what various political appointments and elections might mean for an institution downstream and how to get ahead of the resulting pull.  John also teases out why higher ed needs to consider strategic lobbying efforts as a means of financial survival.  

A particularly fitting episode for this Veteran’s Day.  A very humble thanks to all of the nation’s veterans and those who continue to serve – dedicated patriots from all walks of life who serve the noble and critical mission of preserving the democracy we see in action every day. 

• Jack Strippling (Nov. 6, 2020). Trump’s Presidency May Be Over.  Trumpism Is Not: Academics are grappling with what that means – even without Trump as head of state. The Chronicle of Higher Education available at https://www.chronicle.com/article/trumps-presidency-may-be-over-trumpism-is-not
• Michael Vasquez (Nov. 7, 2020). Joe Biden Won. Here’s What Higher Ed Can Expect: Tuition free college, student debt relief, and the reversal of several Trump policies are high on the agenda.  The Chronicle of Higher Education available at  https://www.chronicle.com/article/joe-biden-won-heres-what-higher-ed-can-expect
• Eric Kelderman (Oct. 30, 2020). The College Degree Is Dividing America (What does that mean for higher education? The Chronicle of Higher Education available at https://www.chronicle.com/article/the-great-divide
• Louis Volante, Christopher DeLuca, Don A. Klinger (Nov. 9, 2020). University admissions tests like the SAT are under scrutiny especially in the age of COVD-19.  theconversation.com available at https://theconversation.com/university-admissions-tests-like-the-sat-are-under-scrutiny-especially-in-the-age-of-covid-19-142963
• Megan Cerullo (Nov. 10, 2020). College applications slide, especially for low-income students.  cbsnews.com available at https://www.cbsnews.com/news/college-applications-down-low-income-students/
• Nina Agrawal (Nov. 10, 2020). Cal State schools see enrollments surge during COVID-19 pandemic.  Los Angeles Times available at https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2020-11-10/cal-state-enrollment-surge-coronavirus-covid-online-classes
• (Nov. 10, 2020). Syracuse, Albany universities going remote as virus surges. Associated Press available at https://apnews.com/article/virus-outbreak-public-health-new-york-albany-andrew-cuomo-

In this second of a two-part episode, John breaks down the U.S. Department of Education’s new Clery Act compliance guidance. Recall that in Part 1, John discussed the context for the announcement – the developments leading up to the Department’s drastic reversal of its longstanding guidance.  Referencing that context in Part 2, John analyzes the new guidance, discusses what it means, and suggests what schools might expect to see in the Clery compliance and auditing world in the near future. 

• Department of Education Announcement Rescinding Clery Handbook  (October 9, 2020) https://ifap.ed.gov/electronic-announcements/100920RescissionReplace2016HandbookForCampusSafetySecurityReporting
• Recalibrating Regulation of Colleges and Universities, Report on the Task Force on Federal Regulation in Higher Education (2015) https://www.help.senate.gov/imo/media/Regulations_Task_Force_Report_2015_FINAL.pdf