On the same weekend that the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) tournament championship in men’s basketball was lighting up the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, a different kind of ACC gathering took place at Virginia Tech with a meeting of the ACC Academic Leaders Network (ALN).
Those from Syracuse University attending the ACC Academic Leaders Network meeting were, from left, Gladys McCormick, Ryan O. Williams, Kira Reed, Jamie Winders, Amy Criss, Marie Garland, Julie Hasenwinkel and Melissa Luke.
Five Syracuse University faculty leaders participated in the 2022 Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Academic Leaders Network. The ACC Academic Leaders Network is designed to facilitate networking across member institutions and foster collaboration among academic leaders. Syracuse University’s 2022 participants are:
Syracuse University’s participants joined 90 faculty members and administrators from each of the 15 ACC universities. The ALN debuted in 2018 after ACC leaders decided to create a program that would leverage the diversity of innovation and ideas among the ACC’s many top-tier research universities. Each ACC school selects five faculty leaders—deans, department heads, associate provosts and other academic administrators—to join a year-long cohort focused on leadership development, collaboration and understanding of trends and challenges in higher education.
At the March 10–12 event on the Virginia Tech campus, participants enjoyed a dinner with Provost Cyril Clarke; a campus tour; networking activities; panel discussions about topics such as diversity, self-care and leading in a time of transition. They also met to build communities of practice centered around common challenges in higher education, like student mental health or recruitment and retention of diverse faculty members. Two more ACC Academic Leader Network conferences will take place later this year at Boston College and the University of Virginia.
