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Join us in welcoming Dr. Liz Gross and Dr. Claire Brady as the 2026 Midwest First-Year Conference keynote speakers!
First Key Note Speaker
Dr. Liz Gross
Dr. Liz Gross
Dr. Liz Gross is higher education’s most trusted voice in social intelligence, and an award-winning speaker, author, and strategist. With over 20 years of experience at the intersection of social media, education policy, leadership, and marketing, she’s shaped the higher education digital landscape since Facebook’s launch. She founded Campus Sonar in 2017 to empower higher ed leaders with knowledge and insights gained from vast social media and online data. College Board acquired Campus Sonar in 2026, and Liz now serves as the Executive Director of Strategic Enrollment Services. Liz was named to GreenBook’s 2019 GRIT Future List, which showcases forward- thinking individuals and innovations shaping the market research industry. She’s spoken at 100+ higher education events, and authored two indispensable guides for higher ed: The Higher Ed Social Listening Handbook and Fundamentals of Social Media Strategy: A Guide for College Campuses. Liz’s higher education experience spans the private and public sector (including the University of Wisconsin campuses in Milwaukee and Waukesha). She received a Ph.D. in Leadership for the Advancement of Learning and Service in Higher Education at Cardinal Stritch University, a master’s degree in educational policy and leadership from Marquette University, and a bachelor’s degree in interpersonal communication from the University of Wisconsin–Stevens Point.
First Key Note Preview
Digital, But Not Distant: The New Rules of Influence
What peer trust means for the first year
Your incoming students already trust someone more than they trust you — and it's probably not who you think. Long before they set foot on campus, they've absorbed a version of what their college experience will be like, built entirely from peers, forums, and strangers online. That peer-trust instinct doesn't disappear at move-in. It follows students into their first semester, shaping who they ask for help, whether they believe your support services are real, and whether they stay past the first hard week.
Drawing on a decade of research into how students and families actually talk to each other online — not what they say on a satisfaction survey — this session unpacks why so many students believe they're "on their own," even at institutions doing everything right. More importantly, it offers concrete, resource-neutral strategies academic and student affairs professionals can put to use immediately: closing awareness gaps, timing communication to when it actually lands, and formalizing the peer-to-peer trust that's already happening informally on your campus.
Plenary Speaker
Dr. Claire Brady
Dr. Claire Brady
Dr. Claire L. Brady is a seasoned higher education executive, nationally recognized AI strategist, and trusted advisor to colleges, universities, systems, and national higher education associations. With more than 25 years of leadership experience spanning student affairs, academic leadership, and executive consulting, Claire helps higher education leaders navigate artificial intelligence, organizational change, and institutional strategy with clarity, confidence, and purpose. Claire is a proud graduate of MSU (BA and MA), and completed her doctorate at UCF, where her dissertation focused on community college transfer student sense of belonging.
As President of Glass Half Full Consulting and co-founder of the Association for Higher Education Consulting and Coaching (AHECC), Claire has partnered with 100+ institutions to build leadership capacity, strengthen organizational culture, and develop practical, human-centered AI strategies. She also serves as a strategic AI advisor to multiple national higher education associations and system-level initiatives, helping organizations move beyond experimentation toward thoughtful, mission-aligned implementation.
Claire's work focuses on helping institutions use AI not simply to improve efficiency, but to create greater capacity for what matters most: student success, human connection, innovation, and mission-driven leadership. Her approach is grounded in the "glass half full" philosophy that inspired her consulting firm's name—the belief that optimism, when paired with strategy, transforms challenges into opportunities.
Claire is the author of "AI with Intention: The Leadership Guide for Higher Education", a practical guide for implementing responsible, human-centered AI across colleges and universities. She also authored The Transformative Potential of AI: Recommendations for Student Affairs Leaders, a nationally recognized report published in partnership with NASPA.
Before launching Glass Half Full, Claire served in executive leadership roles across the Florida College System, including as VPSA roles at Lake-Sumter State College and Ana G. Méndez University in Florida and Puerto Rico. She also held teaching, administrative, and GA positions at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Michigan State University, and Alma College.
Claire remains actively engaged in advancing the profession through regional and national leadership, advising associations and executive teams on AI strategy and organizational transformation. She currently serves as a Trustee for Central Florida Public Media, Orlando's NPR affiliate.
Claire, her husband Ben, and their son live in Orlando, Florida. When she's not exploring the latest AI tools or working with higher ed leaders, you'll likely find her traveling, reading, crafting, cheering on the Spartans, enjoying Broadway shows, or spending time with family and friends. .
Plenary Preview
The First - Year Experience in the Age of AI: What's Changed, What Matters, What's Next
Today's first-year students are entering college in a world where AI is already part of how they learn, communicate, find information, make decisions, prepare for careers, and navigate everyday life. At the same time, many are arriving on campuses where expectations for AI use are still evolving—and can vary significantly from one classroom, department, or experience to the next.
In this interactive keynote, we'll explore what this new reality means for the first-year experience and for the professionals who help students navigate the transition to college. Through current research, real-world examples, and practical applications, we'll examine how AI is changing student expectations and behaviors, where it can strengthen student support and reduce barriers, and where human connection, judgment, and guidance matter more than ever.
Participants will consider not only how AI can support their own work, but also the emerging responsibility higher education has to help students develop the AI literacy, critical thinking, and judgment they will need throughout college, their careers, and beyond.
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