Times are subject to change by AMA. Please continue checking back for more sessions and descriptions!

Senior Leader Experience

Invite Only

The Senior Leader Experience is an intentionally programmed time where top campus marketers can share challenges, exchange ideas and make connections to build a lasting support system. Be the leader who values growth, best practices, boosts morale and inspires a high-performing marketing team! Learn more.

Pre-Conference Workshop

Advanced Email Strategy and Writing

Email is a secret weapon. It connects people on a personal level–if you can cut through the noise. This workshop covers advanced email writing strategies, how to craft emails people will read, and the tools you need to measure success.
People still read emails, but not the way you think. Practice five tested writing techniques that leverage how people read email. Create better emails with a trusted from name, a clear subject line, simple language, and action-driven links and buttons. You’ll see email designs formatted for scannability, ensuring messages are received and links are clicked. No fancy technology required!

Pre-Registration Required: Choose two of the six available workshops. Your selection occurs on-site. Learn more.

Pre-Conference Workshop

Future-Proof Your Marketing: A Hands-On AI Workshop

Discover the transformative potential of generative AI in higher education marketing through this hands-on workshop. Designed for marketers at all levels, the session begins with an overview of essential AI concepts that enhance brand strategy, student recruitment, data analysis, and content creation. Learn about the latest trends and tools, fostering an AI-centric mindset and a culture of innovation.
Participants will engage with practical tools and real-world applications, including interactive discussions and hands-on experiences with technologies like ChatGPT, Claude 3, and Adobe Creative Suite. The intensive practice segment will allow attendees to apply AI to their marketing challenges, gaining actionable insights and skills to implement AI effectively within their institutions.

Pre-Registration Required: Choose two of the six available workshops. Your selection occurs on-site. Learn more.

Pre-Conference Workshop

From Principles to Practice: Marketing Essentials for Higher Education

Marketing strategy choices are institutional strategy choices. This deep dive into core marketing strategies and principles will empower you to bring additional value to your institution. Ideal for newer attendees and those seeking a solid foundation on marketing principles applied to higher education and its inherent complexities, this interactive session equips you with practical insights and sets the stage for deeper learning throughout the conference. But just because it’s challenging, doesn’t mean it can’t be done.
Join marketing expert and higher education leader Seth Odell for this interactive two-hour session where we’ll workshop real marketing, enrollment, and institutional problems in real-time. Through a combination of group work and solo self-reflection, you’ll join attendees from across a wide variety of organizations all striving to solve problems unique to their individual institutions.
Over the course of two hours you’ll learn tips, tricks, tools, and strategies to elevate brand and drive business, ensuring you leave ready and able to tackle your biggest challenges and come out on top.

Pre-Registration Required: Choose two of the six available workshops. Your selection occurs on-site. Learn more.

Pre-Conference Workshop

The Future of Discoverability: SEO, AI, and More

Higher education institutions put out a LOT of content. In this age of AI-generated content and social and AI search, it’s not enough to only do search engine optimization. This workshop will dive into different ways and places to be found, how to optimize your content for those channels, SEO, SGE (Search Generative Experience), and AEO (Answer Engine Optimization), and leveraging AI to optimize your workflow to ensure you can create epic content for all those places.
We will be running audits and reports using your content and doing live optimization that will create measurable results.

Pre-Registration Required: Choose two of the six available workshops. Your selection occurs on-site. Learn more.

Pre-Conference Workshop

Roadmap to Leadership

Join Melissa Richards and Carrie Phillips for an enriching workshop designed to guide emerging leaders through a structured roadmap to leadership excellence.

This interactive session will delve into personal leadership styles, key competencies such as financial acumen and data-driven decision-making, and strategic planning for the critical first 90 days in a new role. Through a blend of assessments, case studies, and a mentorship panel, participants will leave equipped with actionable strategies and insights. Prepare to engage, reflect, and develop a personalized leadership plan to navigate your journey to the top with confidence and skill.

Pre-Registration Required: Choose two of the six available workshops. Your selection occurs on-site. Learn more.

Pre-Conference Workshop

Redefine Your Higher Ed Brand's Measurement Framework

This workshop redefines traditional brand measurement concepts into an actionable framework for higher education. We’ll go beyond outdated metrics to forge new strategies that better capture your brand’s influence and value. Participants will engage with custom frameworks, explore essential key performance indicators, and tackle current marketing challenges as it related to measurement.
The workshop will feature an in-depth case study from California State University, Chico, demonstrating how they successfully implemented a holistic measurement strategy to align their various marketing efforts with their institutional goals. We’ll pair these learnings with additional case studies to help you develop actionable plans to articulate your brand’s impact to your institutional leaders, ensuring alignment with your core mission.
Whether new to higher ed or a seasoned professional, emerge with a robust measurement strategy that clearly showcases your brand’s impact and value.

Pre-Registration Required: Choose two of the six available workshops. Your selection occurs on-site. Learn more.

Pre-Conference Workshop

How to Empower Your University to Represent Your Brand

Building a strong university brand takes years, but inconsistent visual identity and messaging can quickly undermine that effort. This session tackles the challenge of maintaining brand integrity while empowering departments to create authentic content. Your creative peers will share practical systems they’ve developed to extend brand consistency across campus without overextending their teams. Learn how to transform brand guidelines from constraining rules into enabling tools that foster creativity and cohesion. Walk away with strategies to turn potential brand disruptors into effective ambassadors, safeguarding and strengthening your university’s brand presence.

Welcome Reception

Breakfast

Welcome + Keynote: Your Brain is Good at Inclusion… Except When It’s Not

The “Your Brain is Good at Inclusion… Except When It’s Not” presentation provides an innovative, neuroscience-based look at the benefits of creating inclusive workplaces. Using the fields of cognitive neuroscience, social-psychology, and communication (among others), Dr. Robbins explores the human, hard-wired need to belong – and what happens when that need is not met. He demonstrates how our brain has natural and developed tendencies (e.g. unconscious biases) that can help us achieve goals, but also lead to unintended consequences, like the exclusion of others who are different than us. He provides listeners with terms and a language that invite people into productive conversations about inclusion and diversity.
In the end, Dr. Robbins shows that the key to battling bias and a cultivating a more inclusive organizational culture begins with a practical understanding of how the brain operates, but ultimately requires continuous and intentional practice of fundamental skills (i.e., open-mindedness and mindful engagement). With such skills, organizations have a strong foundation for creating and maintaining an environment that unleashes everyone’s talents and skills.

Research & Measurement

The How-Tos and Whys of Reporting Marketing and Communications Results to Leadership

Earn the support for your team’s initiatives from your Board, President, and manager by sharing with them the results of your efforts. This session will provide you with tactics to demonstrate the ROI of your efforts, which fosters leadership’s trust and collaboration, as well as helps secure budgetary resources. Presenters from Babson College will share how they gathered, analyzed, and reported their results. They will talk about what to report and how to report to demonstrate measurable impact of their marketing efforts.

Branding & Content

Game Changer: Unlocking the Brand Potential of Athletics in University Marketing

Athletics can have a big impact on a university’s brand, regardless of the institution’s size or division. In this session, we explore the intricate relationship between athletics and university marketing, revealing strategies to align both for mutual benefit. The secret boils down to strategy, deep partnerships, and a shared recognition that athletics is a “tide that raises all boats.” Attendees will gain insights from DI and DII institutions leveraging sports to boost brand visibility, leaving with pro-tips on everything from aligning logos to fully leveraging the potential of athletics to build audience affinity and brand recognition.

Defining Growth

Truth in Advertising: Unfiltered Answers to Pressing Questions.

Your chance to hear the whole truth and nothing but the truth about advertising. We all get CTRs and KPIs, but there’s a lot under the advertising hood that can be opaque. Black box algorithms. Conversion attribution. Trading. This session will quickly highlight the current landscape of higher ed advertising, then open into an ask-anything, panel-style Q&A. You’ll get the opportunity to have an open and honest discussion about all things advertising and pick the brains of an associate vice president for enrollment and admission services, branding agency, and digital media agency trio. The harder the questions, the better.

Defining Growth

Nostalgia Meets Innovation: Creative Marketing for Fundraising Success

Discover the successful strategies behind Jackson State University’s annual Day of Giving, which has significantly increased participation and funds raised since its inception in 2015. This session will explore how JSU used creative, nostalgia-driven marketing techniques to engage a broad spectrum of alumni and supporters, effectively boosting both engagement and fundraising outcomes. Participants will learn practical tips on utilizing emotional connections and interactive elements in campaigns, ensuring an innovative approach to university fundraising.

Strategy & Planning

Social Media Has Grown Up, Have You?

Redefining higher education’s approach to social media, this session transitions from traditional metrics to robust community engagement. It demonstrates practical applications for aligning social media with institutional goals, driving change through strategic content, and fostering meaningful interactions to enhance student and alumni experiences. Attendees will learn how to utilize social media to address critical conversations, inspire leadership, and actively engage their communities, ultimately elevating social media to a strategic leadership tool and shaking up the higher education marketing industry.

Thought Leadership

From Good to Great: Unpacking Four Pillars of Higher Education Marketing with Industry Peer Experts

Join this session as Advance Education hosts a dynamic panel discussion featuring marketing executives from two leading higher education institutions. We will delve into the essential components of higher education enrollment marketing through our exploration of four pillars that shape success in attracting and retaining students, such as:

• Ensuring a Solid Foundation: a well-defined brand, setting strategic goals supported by data and technology infrastructure.
• Developing and Segmenting Audiences: quantitative and qualitative intelligence analysis and the importance of your CRM in developing and segmenting audiences.
• Engaging and Nurturing Relationships: recognizing the entire student journey, aligning strategies with audience segments, earned and paid media.
• Continual Analysis and Optimization: a culture of data-focused decision making, measuring success, optimizing toward conversion.

Gain valuable insights, actionable strategies, and expert guidance to navigate the ever-evolving educational landscape and unlock your institution’s full enrollment potential. Don’t miss this opportunity to learn from industry expert peers and elevate your enrollment marketing efforts to reach your goals.

Sponsored by: Advance Education

Fireside Chat

Marketing Access Institutions: Unlocking Opportunities and Building Value

This session will explore how marketing strategies for access institutions can effectively promote inclusivity, affordability, and educational value. We’ll examine how these institutions—ranging from community colleges to regional universities—can position themselves to serve diverse student populations while emphasizing quality education and career outcomes. Key topics include crafting clear messaging around affordability, reaching underserved demographics through digital-first strategies, and using alumni success stories to enhance institutional value. By the end of this session, participants will understand how to build a cohesive brand platform that aligns with the access mission while driving enrollment and community impact.

Idea Exchange

Adopting AI

What Ai tools and strategies have you implemented? What efficiencies and solutions are seeking from AI?

Idea Exchange

Freelancer Strategy

How do you use freelancers? What expertise do you most frequently need? What onboarding or systems create efficiencies?

Idea Exchange

New to Higher Ed

You’re experiencing college from a new angle now. Connect on how to crush the learning curve and lean into the fresh perspective and expertise you bring.

Idea Exchange

Winning Enrollment: Targeted Recruitment Strategies

Your campus culture starts with the students you recruit, and every student is different. Successful recruitment isn’t about luck—it’s about delivering the right content to the right audience at the right time. Targeted strategies help you achieve enrollment goals across various programs and demographics. In this idea exchange, you’ll discuss recruitment goals and challenges with higher ed marketers and experts in enrollment, media, analytics, and content. You’ll leave with a checklist for meeting your goals, inspiration for maintaining a winning attitude, and even prizes for insightful questions and ideas!

Sponsored by Paskill

Retention & Experience

Say "Hello" to Campus-wide Student Engagement Marketing

Florida State University’s “Hello FSU!” campaign has fueled the campus experience and sparked increased student engagement through this multi-channel marketing and communications movement. Learn how MarComm creatives teamed up with departments across the university to unify branding and messaging to engage students. Session participants will explore tools to create easily shareable branded content while saying hello to automated AI-infused messaging. Gather fresh ideas to promote consistent messaging, grow brand recognition, and learn tips to launch a social media ambassador program that focuses on increasing awareness of important student resources to further aid student retention and success.

Branding & Content

Vision to Visibility: Transforming Strategic Plans into Campaigns

Strategic plans and university visions often do not make it past the eyes of the cabinet, trustees, and a minority of faculty and staff that helped to craft the plan. This begs the question – if these plans represent our most ambitious goals and future plans, why would we not share them with the world? Instead of reserving these plans to track internal progress, what if we turned them into compelling platforms that would unify messaging strategies and create the foundation for brand, enrollment, fundraising, and reputational campaigns? Michigan and Baylor are doing just that.

Defining Growth

The Messenger Matters

Struggling to come up with impactful content and communications that consistently get and keep the attention of Gen Z? Who’s telling your college’s story? The messenger matters! Prospective students want emails and texts from real people, and they crave more content from the current student point of view because it helps develop connections. This session will explain how to make your enrollment communications feel more personal, engaging, and student-centered. We’ll also share how colleges have successfully utilized current students in strategic planning, social media campaigns, events, blogs, podcasts, and influencer marketing… all in the name of increasing enrollment.

Leadership

Marketing in The Age Of Instant: Make Culture the Center of Your Institutional Strategy

Rapidly emerging social trends, digital dopamine, and a fractious political landscape are undermining higher education brands and thwarting leaders’ ability to plan for an increasingly unpredictable future. This session will examine Scripps College’s use of deep listening to transcend uncertainty, reclaim its narrative, and drive institutional growth and resilience.
Hear how senior leaders are utilizing data and observation from market research to expose friction between cultural norms and brand identity, merging previously siloed conversations about the College’s strategic direction and the student experience. This session will equip attendees to leverage data to drive cultural alignment, deepen affiliation, and fulfill your brand promise.

Defining Growth

Search Cliff Catastrophe: This Crisis Could Leave Your Campus a Ghost Town

For years higher ed marketing communications professionals have heard about the dreaded demographic cliff of 2025 — the year when the number of high school graduates will begin to sharply decline. But the demographic cliff isn’t the only challenge on the horizon. Most marketing communications teams are unaware of and unprepared for the “Search Cliff,” a time in the near future where name buying availability will drastically decrease impacting admissions department’s ability to fill the prospective student pipeline. Marketing Communications teams will need to adapt to ensure that their institution is poised to build and deploy lead generation programs ensuring enrollment and revenue goals are met.

Innovation Showcase

Navigating Demographic and Market Shifts: Strategies for Gen Alpha and Multi-Generational Engagement

Preparing for Gen Alpha: Insights and Strategies for University Marketers | Ologie

The oldest Gen Alphas will be sophomores next year. They’ll be in your prospect pools before you know it. What do you need to know about this generation and how they might approach their college search? What’s going to be the most important thing in attracting and enrolling this generation? We asked 1,000 parents to find out. Some findings are not surprising: STEM subjects continue to dominate preferences, the cost of college remains a daunting concern, and Gen Alpha’s intrinsic digital sophistication is a given. Yet, it’s their pronounced role in family decision-making, the parental belief in the enduring value of higher education, and concerns about social and ideological belonging that offer new avenues for engagement. When it comes to understanding the parent relationship, we found that parents of Gen Alpha give their children a lot of agency in their own upbringing. They give their children a voice and a vote in personal and family decisions.The parenting relationship is closer to a partnership than a dictatorship. And as a result, they are emotionally closer than previous generations have been. What does this mean for higher ed marketers?

Engaging a Multi-Generational Household Through Digital Marketing | Encoura

In addition to knowing where to engage your Gen Z and Gen Alpha prospective students, it’s equally important to know how to reach their most influential decision-making partners, their families. In fact, campaigns that include families have 4x the engagement when compared to campaigns that reach students alone. Stop by our Innovation Showcase to learn more about—and see examples of—digital tactics to reach and engage multiple generations in a home.

Leverage Social Intelligence for Multi-Generational Engagement | Campus Sonar

Higher ed is in the midst of demographic shifts, prompting a critical need for campuses to develop strategies to engage multi-generational audiences. Social intelligence provides critical insights for knowing and understanding people’s motivations. Campus Sonar has partnered with campuses looking to strengthen relationships with admissions, donor, and alumni audiences. By better understanding these groups’ feelings and attitudes about their campuses, they have been able to build affinity and inform messaging to drive timely top-of-funnel action.

Fireside Chat

What If You Could Build It From Scratch?

Rebuilding itself from the ground up, San Francisco Bay University’s president and acting CMO share insights on the transformative process of creating a challenger brand from scratch. This session showcases how design thinking and strategic positioning of marketing and communications inform decision-making in building a strong and disruptive brand. Learn actionable insights from our journey to forge a new MarComm unit, and leave with strategies to elevate your own department. Ideal for those looking to inspire change and foster innovation within their own organization. Blank slate optional.

Idea Exchange

Brand Strategy

Unlock fresh perspectives that help you refine or rethink strategies to building and enhancing your institution’s brand.

Idea Exchange

Advancement

Discover best practices, build stronger donor and alumni engagement strategies that drive community, giving, and pride.

Idea Exchange

Martech

Download (or upload) the latest marketing technology solutions with other savvy techies.

Idea Exchange

Marketing to the Modern Learner: Beyond Demographics & Modalities

How students decide to attend school is no longer determined by age or geographic constraints. In today’s educational landscape, where online study is embraced by a broad spectrum of students, the differentiating factors between historically traditional and historically online or adult student populations has been blurred and blended to the extreme. We have entered the era of the Modern Learner, where age is not a predictor of modality, and all students engage with your school’s brand in a multi-media, multi-touch enrollment process.

During this conversation, we explore the media platforms students trust and utilize the most, dissect the critical role of websites, and discuss a unified brand-building approach that helps schools better serve the modern learner.

Key Takeaways:
• Understand the nuanced dynamics of student interaction with emerging technologies, including FAST and other evolving digital platforms
• Examine the pivotal role of websites in building a unified marketing strategy
• Explore valuable insights into the decision-making processes for the modern learner
• Recognize the potential for enhancing brand awareness through strategic implementation of insights.

Sponsored by Education Dynamics

Lunch + Networking

Leadership

OOO-No! Creative Solutions for the Chronically Understaffed

Recruiting and retaining talent is a pressing challenge across higher education, and marketing leaders carry the burden of trying to align staffing with institutional expectations of marketing. While our offices may be understaffed, demand for strategic and effective marketing and communications continues to increase at institutions of all sizes. This necessitates agile thinking, an openness to flexible working arrangements, and a lot of patience. Learn how three marketing leaders at three very different institutions have creatively addressed staffing gaps to build stronger, more diverse and more nimble teams and hear about trends from across the sector from the session moderator.

Retention & Experience

Beyond Words: Elevate Voices Through DEI Campaigns

Words matter, but action matters more. Have you ever started to create a DEI communication program to meet the needs of your diverse audiences and then stopped dead in your tracks with fear of saying or doing the wrong thing? It can be the most paralyzing barrier to launching an effective inclusive communications initiative on your campus. Learn the three Cs that helped Towson University (TU) overcome fear and drive straight to action: connect, collaborate, communicate… repeat. In this session, we will unpack how TU went from no action to inclusive excellence.

Strategy & Planning

Six Key Steps to Building An Effective MarCom Strategic Framework

Michigan State University’s communications and marketing department developed and implemented a repeatable strategic framework process that is documented in a compact visual format. We share tips and tools to connect to organizational business outcomes, support your university strategic plan and demonstrate value to leadership.

This process has driven alignment and prioritization and shifted our team from a channel- and tactic-centric organization to one more focused on audiences and outcomes. Most important, we aligned our contribution toward organizational business goals. For example, we contributed toward an 11% YOY increase in admissions applications. This strategic framework is a must for MarCom teams.

Research & Measurement

To Affinity—and Beyond! Ongoing Research & Brand Strength

For many institutions, brand research is a one-and-done exercise that only gets readdressed after staff turnover or a major institutional change. But, while initial research-informed branding is good, ongoing research-strengthened branding is better!
In this session we will make the case for a cadence of brand research. We will share how Duquesne University’s new data excited the campus about the brand equity they helped build, based on research four years prior, and inspired them to protect and grow this core business asset. We’ll also discuss how to intentionally plan for (and fund!) additional waves of research.

Defining Growth

Navigating Strategic Shifts: Elevating Advancement MarComm at Drexel

Explore the evolution of advancement marketing and communications at Drexel University, set against a backdrop of significant institutional changes—including an $800 million+ fundraising campaign, the launch of a new strategic plan, an institutional merger, and organizational restructuring. This session will delve into the intricate challenges faced and strategies implemented to enhance communication efficacy, deepen relationships with stakeholders, and boost constituent engagement. Discover how strategic alignment with university goals and actionable approaches can transform advancement into a pivotal, value-adding partner in driving success during transformative periods.

Thought Leadership

How TCU Leads in Addressing Enrollment Challenges with Enhanced Site Search

Discover how Texas Christian University (TCU) is tackling the enrollment challenge head-on by optimizing their site search capabilities. This presentation will explore TCU’s innovative approach to improving the user experience for prospective students, making it easier to find relevant information, programs, and resources. Learn how enhanced site search plays a critical role in attracting and retaining students in a competitive landscape, and gain insights into the key website metrics that matter and best practices that can be applied at your institution.

Sponsored by: SearchStax

Fireside Chat

Conveying the Value of Higher Ed to Skeptical Stakeholders

It’s more important than ever for colleges and universities to effectively communicate the value of higher education. This Fireside Chat will explore effective messaging strategies that connect with key stakeholders, share proven techniques for reshaping public perceptions, and offer insights on fostering collaboration across departments and external partners. By the end of the session, attendees will leave with actionable tips for creating messaging that moves the needle and examples of how to measure and analyze the effectiveness of these strategies in driving engagement and support.

Idea Exchange

Confessions of an Enrollment Marketer

Learn innovative strategies, share insights, and address common challenges, leading to more effective recruitment.

Idea Exchange

Celebrating Institutional Milestones and Anniversaries

Don’t let a milestone go to waste. Let’s hear how you celebrated and capitalized on a commemorative institutional moment.

Idea Exchange

Athletics & Licensing

Let’s go! How are you leveraging athletics marketing to boost fan engagement, lean into NIL, drive revenue and licensing, and elevate your institutional brand and profile?

Idea Exchange

Harnessing AI for Higher Ed: Transform Your Digital Marketing Strategy

In this session we will explore how AI is revolutionizing digital marketing for universities, focusing on tools and strategies that can enhance personalization, streamline content creation, and boost engagement. Bring your experiences and questions as we collaborate on practical ways to integrate AI into marketing workflows specific to higher education. Whether you’re new to AI or already using it, this discussion will offer valuable insights and shared experiences to help transform your digital strategy with AI-driven innovations.

Sponsored by KWALL

Exhibit Hall Break

Defining Growth

Which Comes First: Rebranding, Fundraising Campaign, or Both?

In an ideal world, branding comes first, and campaigns second. But in higher ed, a fundraising campaign will sometimes reveal a need to update your university’s brand. What you do next makes all the difference. Join our insightful panel of leaders from American University and Sullivan as they share how university marketing, advancement, and communications came together to create a successful new comprehensive campaign and a powerful new brand—all at the same time. Learn tips to help you tear down silos and work across teams, create efficiencies, and build the most effective advancement strategy for your institution.

Leadership

Navigating the Scrutiny: Utah’s Collective Approach to Redefining the Value of Higher Ed

Amidst nationwide scrutiny of higher education’s value, Utah’s Board of Higher Education launched a transformative communication campaign. This initiative leverages the collective strength of all 16 public institutions within the Utah System of Higher Education (USHE) to educate stakeholders about the benefits of pursuing higher education. A strike team of communication professionals from across the state have crafted an inspiring messaging platform emphasizing affordability, individual ROI, and economic impact. This presentation shares insights into the campaign’s strategy and aims to inspire similar collective efforts nationwide, reshaping perceptions of higher education’s value.

Branding & Content

Mastering the Art of the Brand Shoot

In our visually driven market, great photos and videos are the key to creating an emotional connection with your audience. Our workshop will equip you with the knowledge and skills to execute a successful photo or video shoot tailored to your school’s goals and unique identity — regardless of budget constraints.
You’ll learn how to confidently plan a shoot in seven easy steps. It starts with understanding your brand’s visual identity and covers concept development, location scouting, working with student models, styling and using props, and even applying tools like AI. You’ll also receive some of the best tried-and-true templates.

Leadership

Using Human-Centered Design to Enable Team Engagement

As leaders, we strive to be good shepherds of the resources in our care – including the diverse people on our teams. To do this – and to realize the greatest benefits for our organizations – we need to ensure our teammates feel safe bringing their unique experiences and best self to their work. By incorporating human-centered design /design thinking methodologies into your servant leadership toolkit, you will be able to lower barriers to your team’s success.

Leadership

Lead Today From Anywhere

This interactive session focuses on empowering you — higher education marketing professionals — to embrace leadership no matter where you sit in the organizational chart. Themes include the importance of mindset, relationship-building, and proactive communication. You’ll learn to effectively manage up, identify your educational gaps, navigate workplace dynamics, and foster a supportive community, while inspiring teams and colleagues to do their best work. You’ll walk away with the knowledge to lead with confidence and resilience and identify actionable changes you can implement immediately.

Hear from two professionals who, together, have sat in just about every position in the higher education marketing industry at a variety of different institution types.

Innovation Showcase

From Creation to Action: Leveraging Active Brand Management for Enrollment and Marketing Synergy

Breaking Down Silos: Uniting Enrollment and Marketing for Higher Ed Success | GMB

Join GMB at the AMA Higher Ed Symposium for an insightful session on fostering collaboration between enrollment and marketing teams. Discover the pitfalls of departmental silos and learn how to build a cohesive strategy that drives both brand recognition and enrollment growth. Hear from a former higher ed CMO who has successfully navigated these challenges and gain practical insights on achieving partnership and synergy within your institution. Don’t miss this opportunity to enhance your institution’s impact by aligning your teams towards common goals.

Shifting the Brand Paradigm: Building a Crisis-Proof Vest | Zillion

Brands are often seen as the drivers of big revenue sources, specifically the big three of Admissions, Advancement, and Athletics. But as Warren Buffet famously said, a reputation takes 20 years to make and 5 mins to ruin. As communications and marketing meld, and with a 24-hour news cycle and a constant barrage of “facts” in the marketplace, we will arm you with the ability to honestly say to Presidents and Provosts that building a strong brand needs to be a fiscal and operational priority.

Why Brands Matter | NextGrad

This presentation will address branding, positioning, messaging, and the power of storytelling in higher education marketing. Rafkin will cover a wide range of branding best practices and discuss how research-driven storytelling can connect with students and stakeholders. Rafkin will reinforce these learnings with a case study of work he completed for the University of Maryland Eastern Shore, a Top-20 HBCU, by listening to the concerns of stakeholders, unifying a fragmented campus, increasing engagement with faculty and staff, and raising awareness of the university’s distinct heritage and elite HBCU status. By the end of the panel, attendees will understand why brands matter in the development of successful positioning, branding, and communication strategies for higher education institutions.

Idea Exchange

Social Media

Read the comments. Swap insights that supercharge your social media game.

Idea Exchange

Career Advancement

Accelerate your professional growth within your organization or beyond. Trade tips on personal branding, credentials, search firms, social networking, and more.

Idea Exchange

Post-Election

Share strategies on how your institutions and leaders are planning, programming, communicating in the post-election era.

Idea Exchange

Women and Leadership

This idea exchange will focus on networking and sharing resources and experiences in our work in higher ed. All roles are welcome.

Sponsored by Mindpower

Behind the Curtain: Student Insights from U.S. News

Keynote: Non-Obvious Thinking: How To See What Others Miss

How can you learn to be more innovative and creative in a noisy world? Inspired by a combination of more than 15 years of trend analysis and hundreds of workshops taught to some of the most pioneering groups in the world from NASA to Disney, this keynote will reveal a proven four-step method to having better ideas, inspiring more creativity and being more innovative every day.

Breakfast

Keynote: Mastering Gentelligence®: Understanding & Leveraging Generational Diversity in the Workplace

Featured in Harvard Business Review, The Washington Post, Time Magazine, NBC News, and more, Gentelligence® was developed to help organizations change how they approach generational differences. Learn why the Gentelligence approach was named a Harvard Business Review Big Idea in 2022 and chosen as one of the 10 most definitive management ideas of the year in 2024!

With five generations currently in the workplace, many leaders view this dynamic as frustrating and challenging. In this engaging workshop, you will go beyond the core concepts to now activate and apply the strategies of Gentelligence® to your organization’s unique generational challenges.

We will:

– Explore the barriers that often prevent organizations (and individuals) from effective intergenerational collaboration.

– Conduct an assumption audit to push beyond lazy stereotypes to understand generational and age differences as a valuable and complex form of diversity.

– Practice replacing generational judgment with curiosity

– Examine how to develop organizational cultures that normalize intergenerational learning and collaboration.

– Learn how to have smarter intergenerational conversations using power questions

Defining Growth

Using Data to Compete for Online Students

The competition for online programs has never been greater. To rise above, you need to identify prospects who will apply, enroll, start, and succeed. Discover how Abilene Christian University Online COO Steven Rutt uses data science to consistently increase enrollments to the university’s online division. Partnering with his digital marketing agency CloudControlMedia, Steven has developed data-driven prospect marketing that drives enrollments. Leveraging data insights and scoring media sources based on down funnel attribution, ACU optimizes its digital media investment to identify the leads most likely to turn into students.

Retention & Experience

Reframing DEI: Building Bridges Despite Division

Diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs have become flashpoints on campuses around the country: championed by some, derided by others. Efforts to “rebrand” DEI offices as “community engagement” or “access and belonging” have had mixed success at best.
This session explores whether we need to “reframe” DEI given the country’s current political division and examines what solutions have worked amid heated political, community and institutional conversations.
Attendees will take part in an engaging and candid discussion among higher ed marketing and DEI leaders about how to navigate today’s confusing, inconsistent landscape and … how to work together moving forward.

Branding & Content

Unbundled and Unconventional: Brand Development Without (Upfront) Buy-in or Budgets

When budgets are tight and short-term performance improvements are nonnegotiable, a traditional brand development process doesn’t always cut it. In this session, Kin Sejpal and Seth Odell share their journey in navigating the challenges of limited resources and urgent performance demands to create an engaging brand campaign while simultaneously decreasing costs. Using an unconventional, unbundled approach and leveraging existing research and paid media results, they succeeded in driving performance and garnering unwavering support for and a renewed focus on brand enhancement initiatives.

Strategy & Planning

Rethinking Marketing in America: Unpacking Multicultural Nuances

This session will demonstrate the essential implementation of a comprehensive multicultural and Hispanic marketing strategy that appreciates cultural intelligence and nuances, highlighting the undeniable importance of integrating these strategies into the broader university marketing framework.
You will learn insights about how a multicultural marketing strategy and a DEI-inclusive communications plan can be seamlessly woven into universities’ overall marketing strategy, ensuring it complements broader objectives.
We will explore four key goals: multicultural marketing, inclusive communications, community partnerships, and student preparation for a diverse global workforce. Each of these goals will be addressed as interconnected links to a university’s comprehensive marketing plan.

Defining Growth

Today I Learned (TIL): Reddit Advertising

Meet our new best friend: Reddit. It calls us back. It costs less. It offers better results! In 2022, we started experimenting and loved it. Now, this two-person ad team from a small undergraduate college has moved the bulk of its paid social advertising budget to the weirdest platform on the web. The result? Lower costs per mille, (way) better click-through rates, and a whole lot less stress (looking at you, Meta).
We’ll cover:
Who is on Reddit (Redditors)Content for Reddit’s culture (Reddiquette)Maximizing ROI (r/thatshowthingswork)
Rated PG-13 (it is Reddit after all)

Thought Leadership

Hits Different(iated): Crafting Higher Ed Marketing that Stands Out

Differentiation is top-of-mind for most colleges and universities at this moment of increased competition and change. When we fail to stand out in our brand and marketing campaigns, we lose students to competitors. When our creative and content look like everyone else’s, we devalue our institutions. And when our messaging is too salesy and transactional, we lose prospects’ trust and interest.

Gen-Z and Gen-Alpha are looking for authentic connection, values alignment, and a unique fit. In this presentation, Dr. Suzan Brinker, co-founder and CEO of Viv Higher Education, and her team will present a 4-prong approach consisting of 1) brand anthropology, 2) competitor analysis, 3) student demand analysis, and 4) labor market demand analysis. Following this approach unlocks roadmaps for differentiated full-funnel campaigns — uncovering opportunities for distinct messaging, targeting, and channel strategies.

Sponsored by: Viv Higher Education

Beyond the Keynote: An Open Dialogue with Rohit Bhargava and AMA CEO, Bennie Johnson

Join keynote speaker and trend specialist, Rohit Bhargava, and AMA CEO, Bennie F. Johnson, for a fireside chat about marketing’s future. This interactive session offers a unique opportunity to ask your burning questions, explore the non-obvious, and discuss the specific challenges and opportunities facing the higher ed marketing community. With an “ask me anything” approach, this promises to be a candid and thought-provoking conversation.

Idea Exchange

Adopting AI

What Ai tools and strategies have you implemented? What efficiencies and solutions are seeking from AI?

Idea Exchange

Freelancer Strategy

How do you use freelancers? What expertise do you most frequently need? What onboarding or systems create efficiencies?

Idea Exchange

New to Higher Ed

You’re experiencing college from a new angle now. Connect on how to crush the learning curve and lean into the fresh perspective and expertise you bring.

Idea Exchange

Winning Enrollment: Targeted Recruitment Strategies

Your campus culture starts with the students you recruit, and every student is different. Successful recruitment isn’t about luck—it’s about delivering the right content to the right audience at the right time. Targeted strategies help you achieve enrollment goals across various programs and demographics. In this idea exchange, you’ll discuss recruitment goals and challenges with higher ed marketers and experts in enrollment, media, analytics, and content. You’ll leave with a checklist for meeting your goals, inspiration for maintaining a winning attitude, and even prizes for insightful questions and ideas!

Sponsored by Paskill

Research & Measurement

Assessing Attitude in Academia with Analytical AI

This cutting-edge session explores how artificial intelligence (AI) is revolutionizing market research and engagement across internal and external stakeholder groups in higher education. Attendees will learn to leverage AI-powered tools to gain deeper insights into key audience members’ preferences and behaviors, optimize enrollment management and academic offerings, and pinpoint brand positioning.

Strategy & Planning

Reverse Engineering a Brand: Good Idea or Playing it Safe?

In today’s hyper-competitive market, all higher ed brands must be well-defined, understood, and highly differentiated. But the path to getting there can take many forms. Do you start from scratch with a blank sheet of paper? Or build on something that already exists but perhaps is not fully evolved? For example, at some schools, a single TV spot might become so embraced by stakeholders that it could be the best place to start when crafting a unifying brand strategy. At other institutions, successful brands have evolved from anniversary campaigns, enrollment messaging, advancement campaigns, and even athletic marketing. The presenters will share how the brand development process can sometimes work backward to thoughtfully reverse engineer a successful brand platform. And what higher ed marketers should consider when deciding to start from scratch versus evolve something that’s already in place.

Defining Growth

Humble Pie: Two-Year Institutions Are Doing It Better

The challenges facing higher ed marketers are unprecedented, right? Wrong. Dwindling budgets. Under-resourced teams. Changing student populations. A value proposition that’s suddenly suspect. The truth is, four-year institutions are getting just a taste of the challenges two-year schools have been grappling with for decades. Another hard truth: many of the two-years are better at this. Join VisionPoint Marketing and some of the best community college marketers in the business as we share best practices and practical tips four-year, online, and graduate program marketers can employ to win, even in the face of 2024’s unique headwinds.

Branding & Content

Incorporating Influencer Marketing Into Your Media Strategy

Colleges, universities, and educational organizations have a world of opportunity leveraging their advocates and turning them into micro-influencers. In this panel, hear how a public university system, a small private college and other educational organizations and corporations have used influencer marketing to infuse authenticity into their brand, build awareness and reach, and recruit students of all kinds.

Innovation Showcase

Influencing Factors: The Strategies and Socio-Politcal Dynamics That Help Shape Student Enrollment

Engaging the Academic Journey: Successful Marketing Strategies Across the Student Lifecycle | Emma by Marigold
In this session, we’ll take a look at some of the successful marketing strategies that have helped universities engage their target audience. With an emphasis on brand management and compelling storytelling, learn best practices for marketing for the entire student lifecycle from enrollment to alumni.

The State of the American College Student | Fuseideas
Justin Vogt, Senior Vice President/Head of Client Services of Fuseideas will present the findings from a perennial national survey of prospective and current college students. This research shares critical trends built upon benchmarks established in 2021, providing insights on students’ personal motivations for choosing an institution, as well as identifying key emotional and behavioral factors impacting students today.

How Politics Influences Where Students Enroll | Echo Delta
We’ll explore the results of a new nationwide study looking at how our current political climate influences where high school students plan to enroll. We’ll reveal the specific ways students believe politics could impact their college experience, how they balance political concerns against other factors like cost and reputation, the extent to which their parents’ political views influence their choices, the states that concern students most, and much more. As a bonus, attendees will receive a hard copy of our research report.

Leadership

Finding a Senior Leader’s Seat and Voice: Leading at the Cabinet Level and with the Board

When you secure your spot as the vice president or CMO, your work gets infinitely more complex. Now you report to the president and lead the marcom conversations and decision-making for your institution, which could make or break enrollment, advancement, and brand recognition goals and metrics. This session will help you to develop a strategy to start smartly and hold your own from day one.

A three-time sitting president with experience at diverse institutional types shares perspectives on how to become a full partner within the cabinet, assist your president as they develop campus strategy, present to the board with confidence, and authentically and comprehensively represent your team with trustworthiness and integrity across campus.

The session will be interactive and experiential, including mini-case studies drawn from real situations vice presidents face in these settings to answer three key questions: When budgets are tight, how do you make the case to retain or even increase the resources available to you and your team? When your president’s message is off or missing the mark, how do you approach them to make a tactical adjustment? In a sea of KPIs and metrics, how do you choose which to bring forward and for which audiences?

Fireside Chat

Leadership Means Taking the Long View

As an industry, higher education communications and marketing is at an inflection point. Our teams are on the front lines navigating disruptive changes that have significant implications for marketing and communications, while at the same time working to mitigate and reverse the public’s declining faith in our institutions. While it can be tempting for us to turn to “flash and sizzle”, what’s critically needed is a long view focused on building our value proposition.
In this fireside chat, two respected leaders who now lead large marketing and communications teams at a flagship public university and a highly selective private university will share perspectives on a pressing priority: fostering a generation of leaders who can help our industry embrace these dual challenges by centering their efforts on the (less flashy but critically needed) foundational work of building value. While it may feel natural to seek attention for smart creative or other transient work, Carol and Luke will make the case that a sustainable and successful careers require taking the long view, focused on generating value, highlighting the impact of what higher education does best, and supporting and sharing the successes of your team.

Idea Exchange

Brand Strategy

Unlock fresh perspectives that help you refine or rethink strategies to building and enhancing your institution’s brand.

Idea Exchange

Advancement

Discover best practices, build stronger donor and alumni engagement strategies that drive community, giving, and pride.

Idea Exchange

Martech

Download (or upload) the latest marketing technology solutions with other savvy techies.

Idea Exchange

Marketing to the Modern Learner: Beyond Demographics & Modalities

How students decide to attend school is no longer determined by age or geographic constraints. In today’s educational landscape, where online study is embraced by a broad spectrum of students, the differentiating factors between historically traditional and historically online or adult student populations has been blurred and blended to the extreme. We have entered the era of the Modern Learner, where age is not a predictor of modality, and all students engage with your school’s brand in a multi-media, multi-touch enrollment process.

During this conversation, we explore the media platforms students trust and utilize the most, dissect the critical role of websites, and discuss a unified brand-building approach that helps schools better serve the modern learner.

Key Takeaways:
• Understand the nuanced dynamics of student interaction with emerging technologies, including FAST and other evolving digital platforms
• Examine the pivotal role of websites in building a unified marketing strategy
• Explore valuable insights into the decision-making processes for the modern learner
• Recognize the potential for enhancing brand awareness through strategic implementation of insights.

Sponsored by Education Dynamics

Lunch + Networking

Leadership

How to be a Good Client (and Why That Matters)

How can you ensure your institution gets the best investment and output from your agency partners? How do you inspire your agency’s best work?

The stakes are higher than ever in education. Institutions must invest strategically, function with aligned leadership teams, and get the very best out of their agency and other external partners to ensure their organization’s success in this new era.

During this session, a panel of agency leaders moderated by a current higher education CMO will host a candid and constructive conversation on what makes for successful collaborations and how to maximize your agency partnerships.

Defining Growth

Admissions Marketing Reimagined

Facing declining applications or worried about the enrollment cliff? You’re not alone. In 2019, Bucknell University was in the same boat — but today, we’re seeing record application numbers. How did we turn things around? Join us for an insightful session where we’ll unveil the strategies that revitalized our admissions marketing over five years. You’ll walk away not just with the story of our success but with actionable strategies and insights that you can apply at your institution to drive similar results. Don’t miss this opportunity to transform your admissions marketing approach and achieve real results.

Research & Measurement

It's Never Too Late: Recruiting the Adult Learner

For years, higher education marketers have studied what it takes to recruit and retain adult learners. While the numbers suggest that this focus is well-worth the effort, adult learner prospects can be the most elusive and challenging to convince.

Join us for a deep dive into a wealth of quantitative data from a consumer intelligence platform gathering data from 230 million adults in real time. We’ll identify insights about prospective adult learners that can inform compelling messaging for those ready to take their next step, as well as channel selection to meet them where they are.

Defining Growth

The Power of Personalization for Enrollment Marketing

Are you looking for ways to deliver personalized digital content to meet the needs of your prospective student markets (and their parents)? This session, presented by Stephanie Geyer at the University of Montana, will deliver strategies to combine effective content strategy with website personalization to increase engagement, conversion, and yield. According to RNLs latest E-Expectations Report, 56% of students like or expect websites to show personalized content. It’s time to adapt to the modern learner and create website experiences that help them along their journey to enrollment.

Strategy & Planning

Happy Birthday to Us!

Do you have an upcoming milestone anniversary? How does the marketing or communications team earn a seat at the table or actually lead the planning? An anniversary is an occasion to engage your community and to raise the public profile of your institution. Learn about the process and how to deliver a full plan to gain buy-in and energize your community. When Trinity College began its bicentennial planning, the marcomm team embraced its leadership role, making the most of an opportunity to celebrate and instill pride. Share and learn tips for planning and promotion. Make the most of your birthday!

Thought Leadership

Creating Outstanding Student Videos: A How-To Guide

You know you need authentic student-generated video content. But getting quality content at scale is hard and very time-consuming. In this dynamic conversation, CampusReel Co-Founder’s Nick Freud and Rob Carroll will be joined by Slippery Rock University’s Kayla Hersperger to discuss best practices around creating, curating and deploying student-generated video content.

Video is the most powerful tool we have on the internet to support digital marketing and recruitment initiatives. In addition to video creation tactics, CampusReel will share it’s playbook on how to maximize the ROI of each video created across each distinct platform (Social Media, Email Campaigns & Institutional websites).

Sponsored by: CampusReel

Fireside Chat

AMA Higher Ed Behind the Scenes

For well over 30 years, this Symposium has been where the higher education marketing community comes together. Have you ever wondered what goes on behind the scenes to make the conference happen? Between the two of them, planning committee co-chair Stephen Jendraszak and former committee member Tony Poillucci account for nearly a decade of volunteer service with the AMA, and they’re ready to pull back the curtain. Whether you’re interested in volunteering yourself, wonder how the committee evaluates proposals, or are just curious to know more about the event and how it works, this is the session for you.

Idea Exchange

Enrollment Marketing

Learn innovative strategies, share insights, and address common challenges, leading to more effective recruitment.

Idea Exchange

Celebrating Institutional Milestones and Anniversaries

Don’t let a milestone go to waste. Let’s hear how you celebrated and capitalized on a commemorative institutional moment.

Idea Exchange

Athletics & Licensing

Let’s go! How are you leveraging athletics marketing to boost fan engagement, lean into NIL, drive revenue and licensing, and elevate your institutional brand and profile?

Idea Exchange

Harnessing AI for Higher Ed: Transform Your Digital Marketing Strategy

In this session we will explore how AI is revolutionizing digital marketing for universities, focusing on tools and strategies that can enhance personalization, streamline content creation, and boost engagement. Bring your experiences and questions as we collaborate on practical ways to integrate AI into marketing workflows specific to higher education. Whether you’re new to AI or already using it, this discussion will offer valuable insights and shared experiences to help transform your digital strategy with AI-driven innovations.

Sponsored by KWALL

Exhibit Hall Break

Retention & Experience

Humanizing Higher Ed: Integrating Student Care Within Your Marketing Team

Discover Forsyth Tech’s groundbreaking integration of a Student Care model within their marketing framework, which was adopted in 2022, helping achieve unparalleled student engagement and support. This approach centers around a concierge-like service, offering a warm, human touch at student interaction points, focused on the steps from inquiry to enrollment. Witness how this model has redefined the marketing funnel, contributing to double-digit enrollment increases as well as increases in student completion and retention. This session explores the power of blending human-centric student care with strategic marketing, providing actionable insights for institutions aiming to elevate their student experience and success metrics.

Defining Growth

Balancing Act: Engaging Multiple Generations with Digital Ads That Convert

Is your marketing team preparing for the largest generation to start engaging with your college’s content? The oldest members of Gen Alpha are about to enter high school, which means it’s time to understand how—and where—to reach them. Backed by Eduventures Research and supported by Encoura’s Digital Solutions, this session will explore how to engage multiple student and parent generations. You’ll hear firsthand the tactics that University of the Pacific has used to successfully engage the entire household throughout the funnel.

Branding & Content

Going Global: Adapting Your Brand to New Markets

Higher education is changing rapidly. As we launch new campuses and degrees, we have to adapt our brand to new cultures and audiences. This presentation is a case study on how we adapted the Georgetown McDonough brand to a new culture in the Middle East when we opened a satellite campus and launched a new degree. Through adapting messaging, visual identity and target personas, we created a brand identity that was both different, but complimentary, to our existing brand. We learned which media tactics resonate with different cultures. This session will share best practices and lessons learned from going global.

Leadership

View from the Table: The First Year

For years, higher ed marketers have been advocating for a seat at the leadership table. But what happens when you get there? In this panel discussion, hear from three higher ed veterans finishing their first year in their CMO roles at Duke, Temple, and the University of Oregon. This session will provide a view “from the table” that can help marketing leaders better understand the dynamics, opportunities and challenges they are likely to face as a CMO in the first year. Attendees will gain insight and practical strategies for anyone preparing for a leadership position, particularly in a new organization.

Innovation Showcase

Future-Proof Marketing: Key Tools and Techniques to Help Your University Continue to Evolve and Thrive in our Everchanging World

Thriving in a Privacy-First Paradigm: Future-Proof Student Marketing | Net Natives
Third-party cookie deprecation and regulatory shifts are upon us! This poses new challenges to your
marketing and measurement efforts.
Join this session and learn innovative strategies from Net Natives to navigate the privacy-centric
future of Media 3.0.

What you’ll learn:
● What is Media 3.0 and how will it impact you?
● What do students think?
● Strategies to avoid measurement blindness, compliance headaches, and losing students’
trust.
● What tactics and techniques will help you thrive?

Join this session and learn innovative strategies from Net Natives to navigate the future of advertising
and student marketing – and stay ahead of your competition.

ATMOSPHERE TV

Beyond the Chatbot: The Future of AI-Powered Marketing | Digital Pulp
We’re just scratching the surface of how to use AI for higher education marketing. Most AI implementations have improved on existing marketing efforts, like generating social posts or building a better chatbot. It’s a good start, but not the revolution AI promised. As higher education marketers, we’re often trying to connect to someone who’s not in the room—the college student. Digging deeper into AI’s capabilities can help bridge that gap. In this talk, we’ll discuss how to use AI to create advanced personas that reflect the diverse needs, hopes and dreams of your student audiences. Then, we’ll show examples of how these dynamic personas can help shape your digital marketing strategy. You’ll walk away with a fresh take on AI, along with actionable insights and practical tips on how to supercharge your marketing while saving time and resources.

Research & Measurement

Closing the Gap: New Research on Student Expectations and Marketers’ Opportunities

Do you know what students really want from your institution’s digital channels? Do you know who they trust and want to hear from to inform decisions?
We’ll detail our original research highlighting how student preference for platforms like YouTube and TikTok to research colleges, and how higher ed marketers are allocating resources. For example, 45% of students trust YouTube for information, while 18% of marketers are investing in the platform.
We’ll identify strategic gaps between student preference and marketer strategies, and share actionable insights, such as how the University of Miami is leveraging UGC video content to engage students effectively.

Fireside Chat

Build Your Community for Professional Confidence

Marketing excellence requires self-assurance—whether you’re presenting to trustees, launching a brand refresh, or building an AI-ready team. Building a supportive community with intention can be a key to unlocking that confidence. It becomes a vital source for reenergizing, fostering divergent thinking, receiving honest feedback, and affirming decisions. This session will explore how to cultivate meaningful, lasting relationships that not only fuel personal growth but also boost professional effectiveness. Learn how to build with purpose, engage deeply in your profession, and leverage your community.

Idea Exchange

Social Media

Read the comments. Swap insights that supercharge your social media game.

Idea Exchange

Career Advancement

Accelerate your professional growth within your organization or beyond. Trade tips on personal branding, credentials, search firms, social networking, and more.

Idea Exchange

Post-Election

Share strategies on how your institutions and leaders are plannning, programming, communicating in the post-election era.

Idea Exchange

Women and Leadership

This idea exchange will focus on networking and sharing resources and experiences in our work in higher ed. All roles are welcome.

Award Presentation + Keynote

Carri Twigg’s career has focused on storytelling about the cultural questions that shape society, politics, and identity. She will share how we should talk about higher education to better connect with our audiences including making an ask for support and participation. Carri strongly believes institutions have a responsibility to lead important dialogues in times of social unrest and will provide examples from her career of effective communication and storytelling that can guide higher education in today’s uncertainty and each of us in our own careers as marketing and communications professionals.

Networking Reception

Breakfast

Leadership

AI: From buzzword to blueprint for team success

Are you ready to hire a new employee who can quickly sift through data, foresee results, and streamline everyday tasks? Meet artificial intelligence (AI), the powerhouse set to transform your work. This session will explore how you can harness AI to drive innovation and elevate your team’s capabilities. It’s an opportunity to become a trailblazer, adopting AI to navigate the challenges of the modern workplace and unlock your team’s true potential. This is an opportunity to explore how your team can adopt similar approaches to achieve remarkable results and establish your institution as a beacon of progress and innovation.

Retention & Experience

Reframing Failure: Community Interventions for Student Wellbeing

Emory University shares their multi-channel campaign focused on stories of toxic perfectionism from faculty and staff, normalizing challenges we all face and encouraging students to join one another in conversation through in-person engagement opportunities. Attendees will engage with the marketing campaign and its bold yet intimate visuals, learning about the deployment strategy and on-going creative strategies for addressing student mental health on campus. The presentation will highlight ideas for leveraging your brand beyond reputational efforts to solve real-time campus issues, strategies to expand social campaign impacts into physical spaces, and methods for building student buy-in.

Branding & Content

Score Big! 5 Plays to Turn Athletics Wins Into a Brand Touchdown

Reflecting on over a decade of athletic triumphs (and one significant setback), TCU recognizes the profound impact of college sports on brand awareness and perception. This session uses case studies like “Horned Frogs Thrive in the Desert” and “Here for a Hollywood Ending” to offer five actionable tips (“plays”) for creating compelling campaigns with tangible benefits: increased web traffic, social engagement, applications and philanthropic support, as well as ad value equivalencies unmatched by paid tactics. The key plays are applicable for universities of all sizes and will provide best practices on interdepartmental collaboration, leveraging unique channels to encourage user-generated content and media coverage, connecting athletic and academic success and engaging with community and local partners.

Leadership

Meet the Committee: Ask Us Anything

Join the marketers from around the country who help plan the AMA Higher Ed conference. We represent institutions large and small, publics and privates, agency partners, and diverse roles across marketing and communication responsibilities. We will share trends from the 2024 AMA planning, how we get involved across higher ed, network and find inspiration throughout the year. This informal panel will be driven by audience Q+A to delve into your questions about broader topics across higher ed marketing and communications. We are looking forward to talking with you in this session and throughout the conference.

Fireside Chat

Navigating Higher Ed Marketing and Protecting Your Brand in a Divisive World

Our current national climate floods us with messages and feelings of both division and hope. Join us for a thought-provoking, candid discussion about this collective tension and its impact on the higher education industry and how we communicate the collegiate experience. Our panelists will share their insights on how to be an inclusive marketer and positively influence the sense of belonging in your work and on your campus. This fireside chat will leave you with valuable strategies and new perspectives to inspire you to lead with and model an inclusive and belonging mindset.

Thought Leadership

From Content Chaos to Clarity: Gannon University's Journey with Digital Asset Management

Marketers in higher education often face overwhelming demands for more content, channels, and campaigns. Andy Lapiska, Associate Director of Marketing at Gannon University, grew frustrated with inefficient content and creative workflows making his team’s job harder than it needed to be.

Gannon University struggled with disorganized assets, bogged-down processes, and inconsistent branding, which slowed campaigns and stifled creativity. What they needed was a digital asset management (DAM) system that would make everyone’s jobs easier, not more difficult— and enable them to deliver consistently high-quality content with agility.

Once implemented, Canto’s DAM software helped Andy’s team by:
• Improving asset organization and searchability with metadata and innovative AI features like facial recognition
• Ensuring unwavering brand consistency across all marketing materials.
• Streamlining workflows and cross-functional collaboration with seamless integrations between Canto and Adobe’s Creative Cloud tools.
• Speeding up time to market and reducing manual labor, empowering the team to focus on strategic initiatives.
Now, with improved campaign impact and a stronger brand identity, Andy and his marketing team are enabled to make their small university stand out in a crowded marketplace.
Join us for an in-depth exploration of Gannon University’s digital transformation. You’ll gain valuable insights into the benefits of adopting a digital asset management solution and how DAM can be effectively integrated into your organization’s existing marketing operations.

Award Presentation + Closing Keynote

Leadership and Crisis Communications in Action: Insights from the University of Idaho

For many chief marketing officers, securing a seat at the leadership table is often viewed as having achieved success. However, true impact comes from cultivating a trusted partnership with the institution’s president, leadership team, and campus community, especially in times of crisis. In this personal fireside chat, University of Idaho President Scott Green and Co-Chief Marketing Officer and Executive Director of Communications Jodi Walker will share their unique journey. Upon his arrival as president, they navigated an 18-month budget crisis, led a return to in-person learning during COVID in fall 2020, and faced an off-campus capital crime in 2022.

This personal fireside chat will explore why the president prioritized internal communications and healing during these highly public crises, why this approach was essential to restoring and maintaining trust across campus, and how their communications collaboration led to six consecutive semesters of record enrollment. Attendees will also gain insight into their current preparations for the upcoming trial, offering valuable lessons for any CMO aiming to build a resilient and trusting relationship with their president and community.