Listen Now

Dr. Havidán Rodríguez has a long and distinguished career in higher education and has been guiding SUNY at Albany (UAlbany) since 2017, accelerating UAlbany's success toward reaching its vision to be the nation's leading diverse public research university. However, Dr. Rodríguez's impact extends beyond UAlbany. In this episode of the MSCHE Pillars of Change Podcast, Dr. Jim Sunser, President of SUNY Genesee Community College and member of the MSCHE Executive committee, speaks with fellow MSCHE Executive Committee member Dr. Rodríguez about his leadership of SUNY's Hispanic Leadership Institute, which was created to support, retain, and foster the success of emerging Hispanic and Latinx leaders across the State University of New York (SUNY), the largest comprehensive university system in the United States.

For the past three decades, University of Maryland, Baltimore County has become synonymous with Dr. Freeman A. Hrabowski, III. He is nationally celebrated for his results-driven commitment to inclusive excellence, collaborative approach to leadership, and mentorship that pairs high expectations with strong support. In this episode of the MSCHE Pillars of Change Podcast, Dr. Katherine Conway-Turner, MSCHE Vice-Chair and President of  Buffalo State College, explores the impact Dr. Hrabowski has had on his students, faculty, and staff in shaping conversations surrounding diversity, equity, and inclusion issues as well as striving to meet the challenges of society . UMBC's model of distributed leadership brings a variety of voices to the table to help move campus discussions forward by incorporating self-reflection.

Since being named president of Union County College in 2010, Dr. Margaret McMenamin has aggressively pursued an agenda centering on improving student success outcomes. During her tenure at Union, the College has more than quintupled its IPEDS graduation rate and been recognized by the Aspen Institute for Community College Excellence and Association of Community College Trustees. MSCHE Commissioner Mr. Michael Collins interviews Dr. McMenamin, a former Commission Chair, on the success found at her community college and the role of higher education in diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives.

In this wide-ranging interview, Lloyd Ricketts, Vice President and Treasurer at the College of New Jersey as well as Treasurer of the Commission and a member of the Executive Committee speaks with Dr. Aminta  Breaux who serves as the 10th president of Bowie State. At Bowie State, the oldest historically Black university in Maryland, Dr. Breaux is committed to ensuring that every student develops an entrepreneurial mindset to achieve success in the workplace and the community, and has added programming to support that call. 

Dr. Katherine S. Conway-Turner, President of SUNY Buffalo State and a member of the Middles States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE) Executive Committee, sits in the interview chair for this edition of the MSCHE Pillars of Change podcast. Dr. Conway-Turner, who was interviewed in the inaugural podcast, speaks with  Pat McGuire, president of Trinity Washington University. Their conversation about diversity, equity, and inclusion issues in higher education takes on more relevance coming the day after former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin was found guilty of killing George Floyd.

Middle States Commission on Higher Education Executive Committee member Dr. Carl Person welcomes Dr. Wayne Frederick,  President of Howard University, to the MSCHE's Pillars of Change podcast for an engaging and wide-ranging conversation about diversity, equity, and inclusion issues.

In the inaugural episode of MSCHE's Pillars of Change,  Dr. Davie Gilmour, President of Pennsylvania College of Technology and Vice-Chair of the Middle States Commission on Higher Education interviews Dr. Katherine Conway-Turner, President of SUNY Buffalo State, who also serves as an MSCHE Executive Committee member.