The HigherEd Podcast

Dr. Andrea Gregg joins the Higher Ed Podcast to explain how micro-credentials, online learning, digital badges, and artificial intelligence are changing how students learn and how institutions demonstrate skills.

Dr. Miller shares his personal higher education origin story, including being born into an academic family, growing up in the Middle East, and eventually building a long career in international education. The conversation explores whether international students and scholars still feel welcome in the United States, the economic and academic impact they bring, the challenges created by visa barriers and reduced research funding, and why the U.S. may face stronger global competition from other study destinations.

Steven Boyd joins The Higher Ed Podcast to discuss international student recruitment, intercultural exchange, servant leadership, networking, AI, and the future of higher education.With nearly 25 years of experience in international higher ed, Steven shares how his career began, what has changed in global recruitment, why personal relationships still matter, and how colleges can adapt as students and families ask harder questions about value, career outcomes, and return on investment.

Students do not all learn the same way, but much of education still treats them as if they do.In this episode of the Higher Ed Podcast, Ali from Simply Taught joins the conversation to explain how a personal experience with his daughter led him to build a platform focused on personalized learning. The discussion explores why students often struggle to connect with classroom material, how AI can help match learners with better resources, and why engagement may be one of the most important measures of student success.

AI is already changing higher education, but many educators are still wrestling with what that change means. In this episode, Dr. Sonya McCoy-Wilson and Darren Thompson discuss the fears, ethics, and opportunities surrounding AI in education.The conversation covers plagiarism concerns, Grammarly, AI governance, virtual reality, personalized learning, predictive analytics, language translation, and the future of AI-supported student success. Rather than treating AI as either a threat or a miracle solution, the discussion focuses on how institutions can use it thoughtfully to support students, faculty, and learning outcomes.

Samira Zacharias shares how she entered admissions by accident, why high school recruitment remains such an important part of student outreach, and how admissions teams adapted during and after the pandemic.

Dr. Cruz shares why he remains passionate about higher ed after more than 27 years, how the pandemic changed teaching and communication, and why colleges must collaborate more closely with K-12 schools, families, and communities. He also discusses the urgent need to increase college-going and completion rates for Black and Hispanic students, the role of community colleges in workforce development, and why higher ed must adapt quickly to demographic, technological, and economic change.

Dana shares her journey from AmeriCorps and mental health counseling into enrollment, why student stories still drive her work, and how partnerships can help institutions prepare for the enrollment cliff. The conversation explores community engagement, employer alignment, student ambassadors, alumni storytelling, sports partnerships, and why higher education must continue proving its value in a changing world.

Nancy shares how she went from receptionist to admissions leader, why scripts are not the enemy of authentic conversations, and why schools need to look closely at their people, product, and process. She also discusses speed-to-lead, texting cadences, application fees, financial aid handoffs, AI in admissions, and the barriers schools often create for themselves.

From workforce alignment to ethical AI, this episode explores how colleges and universities can adapt to a new era of learning. Dr. Tonya Aman Kwatia brings deep experience and a practical view of where higher ed is headed.