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Next Practices · Higher Education Podcast

How leaders tackle student success with creative, data-informed approaches.

Conversations with provosts, deans, and the people running the work — on what moved the numbers and what didn't.

Episode

How Institutions Can Measure Career Readiness in Real Time

Mario Vela, UT San Antonio

UT San Antonio's Mario Vela explains why opt-in career services no longer work — and how a real-time career readiness index makes career outcomes measurable.

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Episode

Doing More Without Adding Headcount in Higher Education

Shari Veil, Provost, NDSU

NDSU Provost Shari Veil explains how colleges can do more without adding headcount by using data, rethinking work, and aligning resources to student needs.

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Episode

Designing Student Support Around Student Needs, Not Institutional Structures

Page Keller

Page Keller shares how colleges can redesign student support around today's students by reducing friction and improving access.

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Episode

Access Isn’t Readiness: How First-Gen Students Build Financial Confidence

Dr. Charmaine Troy

Dr. Charmaine Troy arrived at college with $20 in her pocket. She shares how that experience shaped her view of first-generation student success—and why access alone isn’t enough.

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Episode

The Hidden Cost of the Wrong Technology

What does a failed vendor implementation really cost? Linda Kaczynski shares the red flags, IT lessons, and support standards from 45 years in higher ed.

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Episode

The Shift from Student Services to Student Success Systems

Dr. Michelle Nelson

How can colleges improve retention? Dr. Michelle Nelson explains the role of faculty, data, and coordinated student success systems.

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Episode

Student Success Doesn’t Live in One Department

What it actually takes to get Academic and Student Affairs working as one team.

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Episode

Using AI to Strengthen Student Relationships

Chadd Engel, Waubonsee

Does your AI use case lead to more human connection? Waubonsee's Chadd Engel on using AI to deepen — not replace — student relationships.

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Episode

Beyond the Plateau: Designing Retention Experiments While the System Is Still Moving

Slippery Rock University

What do you do when retention plateaus? Slippery Rock University treats student success as an experiment, not a finish line.

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Episode

[Bonus Episode] How to Empower Student Retention Efforts with AI

Why student success breaks down when insight arrives too late—and how earlier, higher-frequency signals help institutions act before outcomes are set.

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Episode

The Next Practices Podcast: Stories From the Front Lines of Higher Ed

Explore the Next Practices podcast by Civitas Learning, where higher ed leaders share real-world strategies, data-driven insights, and innovative practices.

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Episode

Improving Student Success with a Hub-and-Spoke Advising Model

The University of North Dakota is transforming advising with a hub-and-spoke model, creating consistent support, stronger relationships, and higher retention.

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Episode

Ensuring Your Team is Strategically Enabled to Use Technology

Turn technology adoption into measurable impact. Learn how strategic enablement drives student success with Civitas Learning’s Stephanie Smith Euting.

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Episode

Thinking Creatively About Better Serving Adult Learners with Dr. Frank Dooley

Dr. Frank Dooley

Chancellor Emeritus Frank Dooley shares how Purdue Global boosts student success through credit for prior learning, flexibility, and proactive support.

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Episode

How to Build a Strong Faculty and Staff Advising Partnership

Discover how Austin Community College built a faculty-advisor partnership to deliver connected, student-centered support that drives real outcomes.

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Episode

Applying the 2025 Student Success Impact Report: Insights from the Civitas Learning Customer Development Team

Discover insights from Civitas Learning’s 2025 Student Impact Report and learn how initiative-level analysis is improving student persistence outcomes.

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Episode

How UVU’s Student Success Specialists Build Connection Through Proactive Outreach

Discover how Utah Valley University is transforming student support through personalized outreach, peer-led mentorship, and early alerts—boosting retention and helping students feel seen every step of the way.

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Episode

How an IR-Led Outreach Experiment Boosted Student Persistence at Greenville Technical College

Discover how Greenville Technical College boosted persistence by 25 percentage points using predictive analytics and strategic outreach.

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Episode

From Pressure to Possibility: Dr. Nicholas Zeppos on Navigating Higher Ed’s Crossroads

Chancellor Emeritus Nick Zeppos shares bold strategies for turning higher ed’s pressures into opportunities for affordability, impact, and reform.

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Episode

Creating a Data-Driven and Proactive Student Support System with Dr. Regine Criser and Lynne Horgan

Learn how UNC Asheville is using data, technology, and proactive outreach to boost retention and build a more connected student success system.

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Episode

Developing a Proactive Response to Enrollment Decline with Philip Hunt

Philip Hunt

Discover how North Dakota State University revamped its course scheduling and advising methods to enhance enrollment and retention.

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Episode

Integrating Data Systems to Improve Student Outcomes with Chris Campbell

Chris Campbell

Hear how DeVry University's unified technology systems equip data-activated decision-making and holistic student support.

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Episode

Using Technology to Streamline the Student Experience with Dustin Ramsdell

Dustin Ramsdell

Hear how institutions are reshaping their offerings to support a new generation of students with edtech thought leader Dustin Ramsdell.

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Episode

Building an Appreciative Campus with Dr. Jenny Bloom

Dr. Jenny Bloom

Hear how leaders can expand their Appreciative Education methods beyond advising to create an Appreciative Campus.

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Episode

Inside Look at the 2024 Student Success Impact Report with Sarah DeMeo

Sarah DeMeo

Hear how Civitas Learning developed its Student Success Impact Report and how leaders can apply these findings to advance student success.

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Episode

Advising Diverse Nursing Student Populations with Dr. Jeffrey Taylor

Dr. Jeffrey Taylor

Hear how the University of Texas at Arlington fosters connectedness with its online students through relational and proactive advising.

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Episode

Delivering Holistic Support at a Large Urban Community College District with Dr. Ruth Reinhart

Dr. Ruth Reinhart

Hear how Austin Community College district advisors, faculty, and student success staff deliver proactive guidance support at scale.

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Episode

Creating a Unified Student Success Culture With Dr. Allison Hoffmann

Hear how Northwest Missouri State University creates a student success culture through technology and collaboration.

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Episode

Partnering with Institutional Research to Improve Student Outcomes with Dr. Steve Wilkerson and Dr. Tammy Wyatt

Hear how the U. of Texas at San Antonio Student Success Team works closely together with Institutional Research to improve student outcomes.

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Episode

Improving Community College Enrollment and Completion with Dr. Marisa Vernon White

Dr. Marisa Vernon White

Hear how Lorain County Community College uses data-informed practice at all institution levels to improve enrollment and completion.

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Episode

Implementing a Data-Activated Advising Model with Allison Chase Padula

Allison Chase Padula

Hear how Roger Williams University transitioned from a faculty to a professional advising model with intelligent case management software.

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Episode

Creating Advising Capacity with Diversified Support with Julia Carlo and Landon Peterson

Hear how advising leaders use data-informed advising strategies to create capacity for proactive student support.

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Episode

Delivering Proactive Academic Support at Scale with Dr. John Rindy

Dr. John Rindy

Hear from Dr. John Rindy how his team at Slippery Rock U. uses student success analytics to deliver proactive student support at scale.

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Episode

Lessons Learned from Student Success Redesign with Dr. Penny Kelly

Dr. Penny Kelly

Hear from Dr. Penny Kelly on steps SUNY Broome Community College is taking to create a proactive student success model.

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Episode

Build a Student Success Model that Supports Financial Health with Dr. Patti Neuhold-Ravikumar

Dr. Patti Neuhold-Ravikumar

Dr. Patti Neuhold-Ravikumar shares strategies to build a student success model that supports the institutional financial health.

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Episode

Boost Academic Advising Capacity & Effectiveness with Rob Freidhoff

Rob Freidhoff

Hear how data analytics and intelligent case management software ease capacity constraints and improve academic advisor impact.

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Episode

Improving Student Success Team Data Literacy with Dr. Gene VanSickle

Dr. Gene VanSickle

Hear how the University of North Georgia cultivates a culture of data literacy to improve student success and institutional outcomes.

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Episode

Build a Data-Activated Campus Culture with Dr. Tammy Wyatt

Dr. Tammy Wyatt

Hear how UTSA uses data and analytics to unify institutional goals and build a collaborative student success culture.

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Episode

Maximizing Your Student Success Software Investment with Dr. Chelsy Pham

Dr. Chelsy Pham

Higher education CIO, Dr. Chelsy Pham shares a step-by-step process for finding the right software vendor and how to build buy-in.

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Episode

Remove Barriers to Enrollment with Easy Course Scheduling with Juan Gilberto Garcia, Jr.

Find out how Texas A&M International University uses course scheduling software to ease enrollment and improve student outcomes.

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Episode

Cultivating a High-Impact Advising Team with Leticia Wilson, Del Mar Community College

Find out how to cultivate a high-impact advising team that engages students and connects them to the right guidance and resources.

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Next step

Bring your questions. Leave with an estimate you can defend.

A 45-minute working session: we start from your public IPEDS figures, show what the platform found at institutions like yours, and size the outcome — before anyone touches your data.