Sometimes addressing a structural issue takes some out-of-the-box thinking. Northeastern University, under the guidance of Jessica Liebowitz, Faculty Director of the Student-Administrator Partnerships Initiative, brought together technically-accomplished students to serve as Fellows to assist administrators in addressing a serious or intractable institutional problem. In this episode we hear about one project at Northeastern tackled by two Fellows and the Registrar’s Office staff focusing on student demand for classes, bottlenecks in the curricular pathways, and ways these data might be used to improve the student experience.

Key Takeaways:

• Each of us in higher education has the opportunity and the responsibility to work toward improving the student experience. Sometimes that will require being creative about ways to bring together different individuals to think differently about a problem, and to carve out time to work on solutions.
• The Student-Administrator Partnerships Initiative at Northeastern is a great example of one way to leverage expertise on your campus. Giving capable grad students access, guidance, and resources can open a world of possibilities.
• With any project, be open to where the project might take you. Sometimes what you learn along the way is more important than what you originally set out to accomplish.

Host:

Doug McKenna, Ph.D.
University Registrar
George Mason Universitycmckenn@gmu.edu

Guests:

Jessica Liebowitz
Research Professor, Center for the Future of Higher Education and Work
Faculty Director, Student-Administrator Partnerships Initiative
Northeastern Universityj.liebowitz@northeastern.edu

Ingrid Nuttall
(At time of recording): Deputy Registrar of Solution Delivery and Strategic Reporting, Northeastern University
(Current): Associate Vice Provost for Enrollment and University Registrar
University of Virginiaingridn@virginia.edu

Satya Pulipelli
Graduate Student
Northeastern University

References and Additional Information:

Service Excellence

Leadership

Enabling Academic Innovation

Project Management