Plenary Sessions

Go Deeper. Connect Across the Profession.

The ACUHO-I Content Conferences bring professionals together to dive deeper into their areas of expertise, exchange ideas, and learn alongside colleagues from across housing and residence life.

Plenary sessions bring the entire conference community together for two shared experiences—Monday’s Opening Session and Wednesday’s General Session—designed to spark new ideas and inspire fresh perspectives.

Then, go deeper with your cohort. On Wednesday, each Content Conference cohort explores a topic closely connected to their work, creating space for focused conversation, practical learning, and meaningful connection with peers.

Come ready to learn. Leave ready to lead.

Monday Opening Session (Sponsored by StarRez)

Leading Beyond Yourself: Moving from Individual Contributor to Team Leader 

McKinlee Covey
Educator, Coach, Co-Author of Trust & Inspire: How Truly Great Leaders Unleash Greatness in Others

Many professionals are promoted into leadership roles because they are strong individual contributors—reliable, technically skilled, and great at getting things done. But leading a team requires a different mindset and a new set of capabilities. The shift from “doing the work” to “leading the people who do the work” can be challenging, especially in fast-paced environments where demands are constant and resources are limited.

Join us for this impactful session that introduces key concepts from Leading Beyond Yourself and explores what it takes to successfully transition from individual contributor to team leader in your area of focus. Participants will examine the habits and assumptions that may have made them successful in their previous roles but could limit their effectiveness as leaders.

Through interactive discussion, short case scenarios, and reflection, participants will gain a clear picture of what “leading beyond yourself” looks like day-to-day and identify practical steps to grow their leadership impact—regardless of their current title or team size.

Wednesday General Session

Navigating the Changing Landscape of Higher Education: Priorities, Trends, and Leadership Communication

Moderator

April Barnes, PhD

Assistant Vice President, University Housing, University of South Carolina

Panelist

Hassel A. Morrison, PhD

Vice President for Student Life, St Olaf College

Panelist

Calvin D. Phillips, EdD

Vice President for Student Affairs, University of Minnesota

Higher education continues to evolve at a rapid pace, creating new opportunities and challenges for student affairs professionals. This moderated panel will bring together experienced student affairs leaders to explore the current state of higher education and its implications for campus communities.

Panelists will discuss the top priorities shaping student affairs, emerging trends affecting students and families, and the evolving expectations of today’s campus environment. The conversation will also focus on practical strategies for effectively communicating student needs, priorities, and challenges to university leadership. Attendees will gain perspectives from multiple professionals and leave with insights they can apply to their own institutions, teams, and leadership conversations.

Plenary Session: Housing Facilities Conference (Wednesday)

The Cost of Culture

Lindsay Wagner, PhD
VP Strategic Programs, APPA | Author, The Cost of Culture

Facilities managers know how to identify the tangible drivers of operational cost: aging infrastructure, deferred maintenance, energy inefficiency, labor, and materials. But one major cost driver often goes unmeasured: organizational culture.

Culture is not just an HR concept—it is an operational variable with financial consequences. Low trust can delay work orders. Lack of psychological safety can keep problems hidden until they become costly emergencies. Poor belonging can drive turnover, adding significant replacement costs that rarely appear in a facilities budget as “culture.”

In this plenary, a moderated panel of practitioners will explore the real-world connection between culture and cost, followed by activities that help participants examine where culture may already be affecting their own operations and budgets.

The takeaway: culture is already showing up in your numbers. The question is whether you’re looking for it.

Plenary Session: Business Operations Conference (Wednesday)

Protecting Campus Data in the Age of AI

Chris Gregg
Associate Vice President for Information Security and Risk Management and Chief Information Security Officer (CISO)
University of St. Thomas

Campus housing and residence life professionals are experts at working with students—but how confident are you in protecting the data you work with every day?

As AI becomes increasingly integrated into campus operations, institutions face new questions about data security, privacy, and responsible use of information. Recent cybersecurity incidents, including the Canvas breach, underscore the importance of having comprehensive data security practices—and ensuring that faculty, staff, and students understand their role in protecting institutional information.

Chris Gregg, CISO at the University of St. Thomas and a member of the EDUCAUSE Cybersecurity and Privacy Program Advisory Committee, will lead an important conversation about the evolving cybersecurity landscape. Chris will share insights into what keeps CISOs up at night, the risks institutions need to be thinking about, and practical steps campus professionals can take to help safeguard sensitive data.

Come prepared to better understand the threats facing higher education—and what you can do to be part of the solution.

Plenary Session: Residence Education Conference (Wednesday)

Supporting Students Through Addiction and Recovery: What Residence Life Professionals Need to Know

Kevin Doyle, EdD, LPC
President and CEO
Hazelden Betty Ford Graduate School

College and university residence halls are often where the realities of substance use, addiction, and recovery become visible first. Residence education professionals are uniquely positioned to recognize warning signs, support students in recovery, and help create environments where students can seek help without stigma.

The Hazelden Betty Ford Graduate School prepares the next generation of addiction counseling leaders by integrating rigorous academic preparation with clinical practice under the guidance of leading addiction professionals at the nation’s premier addiction treatment center. In this session, Dr. Kevin Doyle will introduce participants to the Graduate School’s innovative approach to addiction education and the research informing its model of care.

More importantly, participants will explore what residence life professionals need to know about young adults navigating substance use, addiction, treatment, and recovery. The session will translate current knowledge into practical insights for supporting students, strengthening campus partnerships, and creating residence environments that promote health, connection, and successful recovery.