Honing the Competitive Edge of Quality

Yakut Gazi leads conversation around rethinking quality in a competitive landscape

September 10, 2021 | By GTPE Communications
Remote employee using virtual communication to collaborate with colleagues.

On June 30, 2021, Quality Matters hosted senior academic leaders from a broad spectrum of higher education institutions to help better understand, and facilitate the way forward, for quality in U.S. higher education. The context for this national conversation was a moment in time when glimpses into a post-pandemic landscape afforded us the opportunity of both hindsight and foresight. Hindsight to recognize disparities in student access and success well before, but exacerbated by, the pandemic and the foresight of demographic and financial challenges on the near horizon for higher education. Moderators, panelists, and participants considered these past and future perspectives in a current environment of broad political, social, and ecological challenges that impact how we work together for positive change.

During the event, three broad topics, and a set of problems to solve, were posed. Yakut Gazi, associate dean of Learning Systems, served as a moderator, leading the national conversation around rethinking quality in a competitive landscape. The panelists, who represented a broad mix of institution types and missions, discussed their thoughts on quality at scale by describing the way their institutions think about the ecosystems across which they work. Subsequent small group discussions in breakout rooms enabled robust conversation from deliberate ways to build community to breaking the iron triangle and competition, student success, and scale.

To see the summary of the conversation, along with observations about the issues and their implications, view the full President's Summit Report from Quality Matters.