Kurt Edward Ewen was born and raised in Orlando, Florida. He earned an Associate of Arts degree from Valencia Community College and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy from St. Meinrad College in St. Meinrad, Indiana. Graduate and post-graduate studies took him to the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, in Leuven, Belgium where he completed a Master’s degree in Religious Studies and a Licentiate in Sacred Theology (Sacrae Theologiae Licentiatus or S.T.L., a 2-year post-graduate degree) in Philos...
Apr 25, 2022•59 min•Season 1Ep. 14
Peter Felten is executive director of the Center for Engaged Learning, assistant provost for teaching and learning, and professor of history at Elon University. He works with colleagues on institution-wide teaching and learning initiatives, and on the scholarship of teaching and learning. Peter has published six books about undergraduate education including (with Leo Lambert), Relationship-Rich Education: How Human Connections Drive Success in College (Johns Hopkins University Press, 2020). He h...
Apr 18, 2022•45 min•Season 1Ep. 13
Dr. Dan Friedman is the executive director of University 101 Programs at the University of South Carolina, where he provides leadership for six academic courses, including approximately 270 sections of the nationally renowned first-year seminar taught by over 240 instructors and 260 peer and graduate leaders. Friedman earned his Ph.D. in Higher Education from the University of Virginia and is an affiliate faculty member in the Higher Education and Student Affairs program at UofSC. Prior to comin...
Apr 11, 2022•37 min•Season 1Ep. 12
Dr. Tristan Denley currently serves as Deputy Commissioner for Academic Affairs and Innovation at the Louisiana Board of Regents. Before moving to Louisiana in January 2022, he served as Executive Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs and Chief Academic Officer at the University System of Georgia, Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs at the Tennessee Board of Regents and Vice President for Academic Affairs at Austin Peay State. Originally from Penzance, England, Dr. Denley earned his PhD in Mathe...
Apr 04, 2022•41 min•Season 1Ep. 11
Susan Winslow is President of Macmillan Learning. She has more than 30 years of educational publishing and technology experience. In her career at Macmillan Learning, Ms. Winslow was most recently General Manager, where she championed learning science and the transition to digital learning. Under her leadership, Macmillan Learning gained market share for four consecutive years and developed, tested, and launched its new digital learning platform Achieve. The Bedford Freeman Worth High School tea...
Mar 28, 2022•40 min•Season 1Ep. 10
Charlie Nelms, President-in-Residence, United Negro College Fund Dr. Charlie Nelms is a transformational servant-leader, a motivational speaker, and a consultant with expertise in higher education. He has more than 40 years of experience and leadership in student access, retention, and graduation; institutional effectiveness; and strategic planning. The former chancellor of universities in North Carolina, Indiana, and Michigan, Nelms serves as a board member for leading educational associations ...
Mar 21, 2022•40 min•Season 1Ep. 9
Dr. Aaron Thompson is a passionate advocate for higher education. As a first-generation college student from rural Clay County, Kentucky, he experienced first-hand the transformative power of a college credential. As President of the Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education, he works to ensure all Kentuckians have an equal opportunity to improve their lives through postsecondary education. Before taking the helm of CPE, Thompson served as interim president of Kentucky State University and as ...
Mar 14, 2022•30 min•Season 1Ep. 8
Kimberly Koledoye is a professor and the program coordinator of the Academic Student Success/First Year Experience program at Houston Community College. Kimberly’s extensive teaching background in literacy, English, education, and student success spans both the K-12 and post-secondary arenas. She specializes in course design and has led development teams in creating courses for college success, Developmental English, Integrated Reading and Writing, and accelerated Co-requisite models. She is pas...
Mar 07, 2022•45 min•Season 1Ep. 7
Dr. Wheelan currently serves as President of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges and is the first African American and the first woman to serve in this capacity. Her career spans over 40 years and includes the roles of faculty member, chief student services officer, campus provost, college president, and Secretary of Education. In several of those roles, she was the first African American and/or woman to serve in those capacities. Dr. Wheelan received her Bach...
Feb 21, 2022•29 min•Season 1Ep. 6
Freeman Alphonsa Hrabowski III is an American educator, advocate, and mathematician. In May 1992 he began his term as president of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC), one of the twelve public universities composing the University System of Maryland. Dr. Hrabowski has been credited with transforming UMBC into an institution noted for research and innovation. Under his leadership, UMBC was ranked the #1 Up and Coming University in the U.S. for six consecutive years (2009-2014) by ...
Feb 14, 2022•41 min•Season 1Ep. 5
Dr. Kirsten Turner serves as the Vice President for Student Success, a role that positions her as the institution’s chief student affairs officer and a leading advocate for student development. A leader with a long tenure at the University of Kentucky, she transitioned to her current role after serving in multiple associate provost roles and as one of the institution’s leading architects of strategies to improve retention and graduation rates. Prior to joining the provost’s office, Turner began ...
Feb 07, 2022•41 min•Season 1Ep. 4
Maria Martha Chavez Brummell is the Chief Executive Officer for Catch the Next, Inc. She received a PhD and M. Phil from Yale University in Sociology. She also holds two degrees from Kansas State University: a Master’s Degree in Education and a Bachelor’s degree in Journalism, Psychology and Spanish Literature. Maria Martha began her career in higher education as an Assistant Director of Admissions at Kansas State before taking up a position as Assistant Dean of Yale College, and a member of the...
Jan 31, 2022•43 min•Season 1Ep. 3
Kurt is currently the Vice Chancellor of Strategy, Planning & Institutional Effectiveness at Houston Community College (HCC) Kurt’s areas of focus include: strategic and operational planning, regional accreditation with SACSCOC, educational policy, data and analytics, innovation and collaborative problem solving, entrepreneurial initiatives, and grants. Kurt is a recognized speaker on issues related to strategic planning, large-scale organizational change, learning outcomes assessment, stude...
Jan 14, 2022•39 min•Season 1Ep. 2
A native of Atlanta, Dr. Walter M. Kimbrough was his high school salutatorian and student body president in 1985, and went on to earn degrees from the University of Georgia, Miami University in Ohio, and a doctorate in higher education from Georgia State University. He has enjoyed a fulfilling career in student affairs, serving at Emory University, Georgia State University, Old Dominion University, and finally Albany State University in 2000 where he became the vice president for Student Affairs...
Jan 14, 2022•26 min•Season 1Ep. 1
