Pre-Conference Workshop
PLEASE NOTE: The Pre-Conference Workshop is open to Directors, Administrators and Faculty only.

Welcome 

Jennifer Curran, President, AGLSP

Opening the Dialogue: Shared Leadership in Graduate Liberal Studies

Moderated by Jennifer Curran, Wesleyan University

You’re in a room with some of your greatest allies - even if you don’t know it yet! In this opening session, you’ll have a chance to connect, share the many hats we wear, reflect on the hurdles we navigate, and celebrate the successes that keep us inspired. This is a great opportunity to find the conversations you’ll want to continue.

From First Contact to Lifelong Connection: Recruitment and Retention in GLS

Moderated by Colin Chapell, University of Memphis

We share strategies, ideas, and real-world experiences on recruiting new students, keeping them engaged through graduation, and building lasting alumni relationships. Topics will include:

• Smart marketing strategies: what’s working (and what isn’t) for GLS programs today

• Using social media to tell your program’s story and reach new audiences

• Creating program events that boost enrollment, strengthen community, and retain students

• Strategies for alumni engagement: turning graduates into advocates

• Sharing success stories: what small wins or big changes have made a difference

• Open discussion: emerging challenges, new ideas, and creative experiments in recruitment and retention

Political Crossroads: Attacks, Defenses, and Counterstrikes

Moderated by  Elizabeth Smock and Patricia Carlton, University of Central Florida

Educators, especially those in the Liberal Arts and Interdisciplinary Studies, tend to be critical thinkers who value diversity, but what do we do when critical thinking and diversity are themselves discredited? This interactive brainstorming workshop will discuss some of the attacks our programs are facing here in Florida, then ask groups to discuss the climate in their own institutions or governments. We will offer questions for groups to brainstorm possible solutions and have each group briefly present their conclusions. Groups will split and reform at least once to get different perspectives and think about new questions and solutions. We hope the workshop will provide a global higher education action guide inspired by the Simple Sabotage Field Manual, written by the Office of Strategic Services (precursor to the CIA) in 1944 to assist OSS officers abroad train local saboteurs to be more effective. We need to learn effective ways to keep teaching and assisting our students through the crossroads we face in higher education.