EAB’s Kaitlyn Maloney returns to the podcast to moderate a discussion with her colleagues Jackson Nell and Kathy Ruby on what the American Rescue Plan means for higher education. The three talk about what we’ve learned from previous federal stimulus bills that might help schools begin to chart a path forward, even as we wait for much-needed guidance from the Department of Education. They urge university leaders to view this as their last and best opportunity to put their financial houses in order. They also share tips for communicating with students and families about the distribution of financial aid.

EAB’s Meacie Fairfax returns to the podcast for a conversation with College Possible CEO Craig Robinson. The two discuss the power of community partnerships in giving underserved students greater access to higher education and stronger pathways to successful careers. Mr. Robinson suggests that colleges must be willing to change their mindset in order to serve their students and their communities more effectively. Embracing the challenge of joining with community partners who offer complementary skills and assets is an important step along that journey.

EAB’s Carla Hickman and Colin Koproske have been working together and studying the phenomenon of massive open online courses, or MOOCs, since 2012. On today’s episode, the two discuss Coursera’s recent IPO-related financial filings. Carla and Colin also examine the extent to which MOOCs and the companies that provide them represent a threat to higher ed, or whether more colleges should be looking to partner with companies like Coursera to expand their online course offerings.

College enrollment dipped this past fall as most people expected. However, the decline was not equally distributed across all demographic cohorts or types of institutions. Journalist Jon Marcus joins EAB’s Madeleine Rhyneer to examine the data which show surprising enrollment trends that have not received the media attention they deserve. The two discuss ways that college recruiting has changed forever as a result of the pandemic, and they explain why doing “more of the same” isn’t going to work this time.

EAB’s Kaitlyn Maloney and Ron Yanosky discuss what we’ve learned over the past year through our collective experiment in mass teleworking. They then dig into some of the unique challenges colleges and universities face as they explore more flexible approaches to space utilization, hiring, and HR policies. While a few best practices emerging from the private sector can easily be replicated across higher education, universities will need to get creative in order to adapt without losing the sense of place that makes campus life special.

EAB’s Jeff Martin is joined by Penn State University Vice President of Development and Alumni Relations Richard Bundy. The two talk about the state of university fundraising and key takeaways from EAB’s latest survey of college fundraising professionals. Mr. Bundy provides insight into how his team shifted strategy and tactics to adapt to an entirely virtual fundraising environment. Finally, the two share tips for managing fundraising teams and gift proposals both today and in the months ahead as we emerge from the pandemic.

EAB’s Tom Sugar talks to Paula Short from the University of Houston about lessons they learned launching Houston GPS, the nation’s first regional consortium of two- and four-year schools working together to improve transfer pathways and college completion rates. They also talk about how they are applying those lessons to EAB’s new Moon Shot for Equity.

EAB’s Kathy Dawley and Al Newell discuss the role that parents play in the college recruiting process and share findings from a recent EAB survey about their communication preferences. They talk about how different types of information become more or less important to parents as they get closer to the application deadline. Kathy and Al also urge colleges to focus on communicating how they support and guide students along their educational journey. They also recommend that colleges take a hard look at their websites since the quality of the design and content on your website is viewed by many parents as a proxy for the quality of your institution.

Noted author Nathan D. Grawe talks about his new book that explores how college recruitment and retention efforts are evolving to meet demographic and other challenges.

EAB’s Megan Adams and Will Lamb discuss growth opportunities and the competitive landscape in the master’s and graduate degree markets.