What Two Chronicle Articles Taught Me About Leadership in Higher Ed

 What Two Chronicle Articles Taught Me About Leadership in Higher Ed

This week I read two articles that really made me think about what leadership should look like in higher education. Both were completely different, but they touched on some important truths about power, influence, and the voices that often get left out.

The first article talked about how private equity professionals are starting to make up a big part of university boards at elite schools. At first glance, it might not seem like a big deal—after all, who wouldn’t want someone who understands finance on their board? But as I kept reading, I started to worry. If leadership is mostly coming from people whose background is profit and investment, how do we make sure that the mission of education stays focused on students and communities? I thought about the nursing students I work with and how hard some of them fight just to make it to class. I do not want decisions about their education being made by people who have never walked in their shoes.

Then there was the second article. It told the story of a professor who got kicked out of a graduation ceremony because he privately questioned some of the administration’s choices around student debt. He was calm and respectful, but the response was to remove him from the event. That part really stuck with me. Leadership is not about avoiding hard conversations or protecting an image. It is about listening—even when what we hear is hard to swallow. If people feel like they cannot speak up, we lose something essential in our schools. Transparency, honesty, and accountability matter.

These stories made me think about the kind of leader I want to be. I want to lead with empathy and openness. I want to make room at the table for voices that are too often ignored. And I want to stay rooted in the purpose of education—not the prestige, not the money, but the people. Especially the students who are just trying to make a better life for themselves.

Higher ed has a lot of growing to do, but reading these stories reminded me why I care so much about doing this work the right way.