2025 TLI Leadership Track Schedule: Home

1:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.

4:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.

5:30 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.

7:30 a.m. – 8:15 a.m.

8:30 a.m. – 10:00 a.m.

Fayerweather Hall

Keynote Joint Plenary Session

Understanding the Path to College: Insights from High School Students and the Hidden Curriculum

Dr. Erin Hardin, Professor and Associate Department Head of Psychology & Director of Undergraduate Studies, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville

In her keynote, Dr. Hardin will share insights gathered over the past decade from thousands of rural East Tennessee high school students about the barriers and supports they perceive in their transition to college. We will explore the “possible selves” they dream of, shedding light on the challenges and opportunities they face as they come to our campuses. She will also link these supports and challenges before college to the concept of the “hidden curriculum” in college, its impact on student success, and what she has learned about the hidden curriculum at her own institution. 

By the end of the session, participants will have a deeper understanding of the experiences some of our students bring with them, setting the stage for deeper exploration in the sessions that follow during the week.

10:00 a.m. –10:15 a.m.

10:15 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

Anderson Hall 210

Session I: Self Identity Context

What Kind of Leader Am I?

Dr. Amanda Slone, Assistant Provost & Associate Professor of English, University of Pikeville

Have you ever wondered what your behavior says about your personal leadership style? One assessment tool that can help you find out is the DiSC. Participants within Track II will take the DiSC prior to attending the Teaching and Leadership institute. DiSC is a behavior assessment tool based on the DiSC theory of psychologist William Moulton Marston, which centers on four different behavioral traits: dominance, inducement, submission, and compliance. Understanding your primary behavioral traits will help you identify qualities to leading within your institution. In addition, it will help you gain a personal understanding of working and collaborating with colleagues. The ability to motivate, inspire, and engage your community within a vision will be explored.

12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.

1:15 p.m. – 3:15 p.m.

Session I: Self Identity Context (continued)

3:15 p.m. – 3:45 p.m.

3:45 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.

Anderson Hall 210

Session II: Self-Identity Context

Thinking Institutionally and Relating Individually

Dr. Tracy Parkinson, Executive Vice President and Provost, Mars Hill University

As you engage your leadership responsibilities and take on new leadership roles, you may be challenged to take on institutional challenges while maintaining relationships with programs and individuals.  This may manifest itself as you become involved in budgeting, curriculum development, policy decisions, or even personnel matters.  You will find yourself often interacting with multiple types of stakeholders in any given day and week, each with unique perspectives and priorities. You may find that different stakeholders have differing expectations of you.  In this session, we will discuss your evolving role(s) as a campus leader and how that may inform your daily work, your responsibility to your institution, and your working relationships.

5:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.

Dinner

7:30 a.m. – 8:15 a.m.

8:15 a.m. –9:45 a.m. &

10:00-10:45 a.m.

Anderson Hall 210

Session III: The Environmental Context

The Higher Education Landscape in the ACA Context: Leadership in a Time of Disruption

Dr. Larry Hall, Vice President for Academic Programs, Appalachian College Association

Effective leadership relies on a never-ending interplay between one's own personal style and characteristics and the environment in which s/he leads. Even prior to the pandemic, higher education currently faced levels of disruption greater than perhaps any previous period in our history. The impact it is having on small, private, tuition-driven institutions is especially challenging.

To be an effective leader requires one to possess a rich understanding of the landscape that shapes our present context--both specific to our own campuses and our roles and, generally, related to the pressing challenges and opportunities before us. This presentation highlights many of these issues, and it provides context for the opportunities and challenges facing ACA institutions. The second portion of the session will furnish opportunity for small group discussions focusing on forecasts of what opportunities and challenges our future may hold at ACA institutions.

9:45 a.m. – 10:00 a.m.

10:45 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.

Anderson Hall 210

Session IV: Theory & Practice Context

Is This the Hill I Want to Die On?: Navigating Collaborative Leadership & Political Capital in Higher Education

Dr. Lynn Linder, Provost and Executive Vice President, West Virginia Wesleyan College

This session explores the intersection of collaborative leadership and political capital in higher education. Participants will examine how to effectively navigate complex institutional dynamics while fostering a collaborative leadership approach. The presentation will address strategies for identifying key priorities, building institutional alliances, and judiciously expending political capital to achieve institutional goals. Through case studies and interactive discussions, attendees will gain insights into balancing collaborative decision-making with decisive action, particularly in challenging situations. The session aims to equip emerging leaders with practical tools for assessing when to compromise and when to stand firm, to enhance their ability to lead effectively in the unique context of rural and Appalachian higher education settings.

12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.

1:00 p.m. –2:15 p.m.

Anderson Hall 210

Session V: The Environmental Context

Leading the Next Generation; Understanding and Engaging Today’s College Student

Elise Syoen, Dean of Students & Executive Director for Student Services, Lincoln Memorial University

The role of faculty extends beyond the classroom and requires an understanding of today’s college student. This session will explore the intersection faculty leadership and the evolving needs of the current student generation through strategies for engaging with students beyond academic settings, insights into how students use social media as a primary mode of communication, and the need for building rapport and fostering a sense of community. Attendees will gain awareness and tools to adapt and enhance their leadership both in and out of the classroom to best support and empower our students.

2:30 p.m. –3:30 p.m.

Anderson Hall 210

Session VI: The Environmental Context

Leading with Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Strategies in Appalachia

Dr. Kevin Ung, Consultant for CarterBaldwin Executive Search &

Adjunct Professor of Education, Lee University

This session will explore a broad overview of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) strategies within the higher education landscape. Discussions will include cultivating a safe, compassionate, and equitable work culture to collectively invigorate student success and retention practices. In essence, we will define the “why” behind the importance of DEI work and focus specifically on challenges faced by ACA-member institutions.

3:30 p.m. – 3:45 p.m.

3:45 p.m. –4:45 p.m.

Anderson Hall 210

Session VI (continued)

Participants will engage in active conversation with fellow ACA colleagues to hear the DEI successes, pain points, and aspirations on their respective campuses. We will collectively identify campus resources, environmental challenges, and cultural complexities that will impact our efforts. Lastly, participants will walk away with actionable steps to identify and implement strategic DEI goals to pursue over the next several months for the purpose of sustained success.

5:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.

7:30 a.m. – 8:15 a.m.

8:15 a.m. – 9:30 a.m.

Anderson Hall 210

Session VII: Theory & Practice Context

Navigating Permanent Whitewater: Anticipating What's Around the Next Bend

Dr. Jason Pierce, Provost, Young Harris College

Management and organizational behavior scholar Peter Vaill developed the term "permanent white water" as a model for the ever-changing, unpredictable messiness of complex human systems. It is an apt metaphor for ACA institutions, both because our industry is in a state of constant disruption and because our mountains give rise to some of the most breathtaking whitewater rivers in the country. Anyone who has braved the Nantahala, the Ocoee, the Gauley, the Chattooga, the Nolichucky, or any of a host of others in our region has learned to respect the capricious power of the river. Higher education is just such a river, one with its own currents and eddies and hidden rocks but rarely with much slack water. Effective college leaders, like rafting guides, understand the underlying topography, anticipate challenges, and set their institutions up for continuing success. Session participants will explore Vaill's metaphor and consider its application to their own institutions.

9:30 a.m. – 9:45 a.m.

9:45 a.m. – 11:00 a.m.

Anderson Hall 210

Session VIII: Theory & Practice Context

Effective Leadership in a Time of Change and Adaptation

Dr. Matt Roberts, Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost, King University

The value of a four-year liberal arts education has never been more questioned in recent times. Institutions within the ACA are confronted with enrollment pressures and sustainability decisions amid wildly changing shifts in student populations and new instructional methods (i.e., online and hybrid remote models). Coupled with current inflation and staffing issues also affecting higher education sectors, how does an academic leader paddle (not stir) through the quagmire? What do effective leadership models look like in response to these challenges? This presentation complements earlier sessions' focus on the larger changing educational landscape by concentrating on the inter- and intrapersonal “so-what” for academic leaders.

11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

Anderson Hall 210 (and nearby rooms)

Session IX: Application Context

Exploring Cases and Problems I (Organized Breakout Sessions)

Drs. Pierce, Roberts, & Hall, facilitators

12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.

1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m.

Anderson Hall 210 (and nearby rooms)

Session X: Application Context

Exploring Cases and Problems II (Organized Breakout Sessions)

Drs. Pierce, Roberts, & Hall, facilitators

2:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.

“Big Picture” Takeaways and Remaining Inquiries: Group Discussion

3:00-3:30 pm

3:30-4:00 pm

Plenary Closing Ceremony of TLI: Presentation of Certificates

4:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.

Check-out: return keys & linens for those departing on Thursday

7:30 a.m. - 9:00 a.m.

Check-out: return keys & linens for those departing on Friday