November 2025 Edition

Your institution relies on forms for nearly every process, but when built on rigid fillable PDFs, they become liabilities that stall strategic goals and incur significant costs. Join Paris Junior College (PJC) on Nov 19th to learn the exact blueprint they used to move from high-error manual processes to over $72,143 in measurable annual savings.

Brought to you by MackeyStrategies —strategic consultants helping educational institutions advance their missions through technology, communications, and fundraising.

 Thriving in an Era of Uncertainty by Jeff Dillon

Higher education stands at the edge of its most challenging chapter yet. The demographic cliff has arrived, with a 15% enrollment decline between 2010 and 2021.

Meanwhile, budgets shrink, political scrutiny intensifies, and students expect digital

experiences that rival Silicon Valley's best.

This perfect storm isn’t just reshaping higher education, it’s an awakening. The institutions that thrive will reimagine their digital foundations and embrace future-proof digital campus strategies. The key lies in creating infrastructure so agile and resilient it transforms uncertainty into advantage.

Join Our Webinars

From PDFs to eForms: One College's Money-Saving Transformation

Institutions rely on forms to run nearly every campus process, but when built on rigid fillable PDFs with manual workflows, they become liabilities rather than assets. Submission errors, manual follow-ups, and frustrated users can stall strategic goals and cost institutions thousands of dollars.

Join Sebastian Barron, Vice President of Technology at Paris Junior College, and Ricardo Rengifo, President of DBS Software & Services, moderated by Jeff Dillon, EdTech Connect Founder & CEO, as they share the real story of transforming inefficient, ad-hoc processes into modern seamless workflows with eForms .

Learn how PJC moved from submission errors and manual follow-ups to a centralized forms and workflows platform that empowers users with an intuitive experience, quick updates, campus-wide collaboration, and a fast ROI.

In this webinar, you'll learn to:

• Identify the true cost of inefficient PDFs and learn practical strategies to get processes back on track with measurable financial impact.
  
• Prove value quickly by digitizing the most complex workflows first—PJC transformed high-error forms into streamlined, error-free digital experiences that gained immediate campus-wide buy-in.
  
• Empower staff self-sufficiency through hands-on training using a "Forms as a Service" model, enabling teams to independently design new eForms while freeing scarce IT resources.



Nov 19th | 11:00 AM PT

January 4–7, 2026: CIC Presidents Institute 2026 Council of Independent Colleges (CIC) This annual gathering focuses on strategy for presidents and senior leadership of independent colleges. The 2026 program is built around core themes like the Academic Social Contract, Building a Resilient Campus Culture, and Identity, Pluralism, and the Current Landscape of Higher Education. Sessions will cover topics such as: Transforming Institutions with Agentic AI, securing financial futures, streamlining transfer processes, and strengthening campus governance.

February 25–28, 2026: ACE Experience 2026 (ACEx2026) American Council on Education (ACE) ACEx2026 is a major convening for college and university leaders focused on high-level policy, practice, and leadership. The event includes the 2026 ACE Annual Meeting and the ACE Women's Network Leadership Conference. Core themes for the year are: Grand Challenges (democracy, climate change, public trust), Campus Adaptability, and The Future of Learner Success.

March 9–12, 2026: SXSW EDU Conference & Festival SXSW This event is known for combining an innovative conference program with a festival atmosphere, focusing on Education Innovation & Emerging Technology. While the full EDU lineup is still being finalized, the broader SXSW event will feature discussions across all tracks, including Tech & AI, and sessions on the future of work and learning. It draws attendees from across the K-12, higher ed, and tech sectors.

March 15–18, 2026: League for Innovation – Innovations 2026 League for Innovation in the Community College This conference is dedicated to Community College Innovation and Leadership. The schedule is structured with specific tracks for Presidents and Vice Presidents, alongside general and breakout sessions focused on teaching, learning, and administrative best practices unique to the community college sector.

March 21–24, 2026: HLC Annual Conference (Higher Learning 2026) Higher Learning Commission (HLC) The HLC Annual Conference focuses on accreditation, institutional effectiveness, and quality assurance in higher education. It brings together professionals who are shaping the future of the sector, with sessions covering institutional improvement, compliance, and regulatory issues for HLC member institutions.

Tracking Higher Ed Tech Trends at EDUCAUSE ListedTech

Drawing from discussions at the EDUCAUSE conference, this article analyzes the shifting EdTech landscape, focusing on the new technologies and strategies driving digital transformation in higher education.

Cornell Will Pay $60 Million and Provide Admission Data to Restore Federal Funding Chronicle

Cornell University has reached a settlement, agreeing to pay $60 million and provide admissions data. This agreement is aimed at restoring its access to federal funding, following an issue concerning past compliance or reporting standards.

Google Seeks Partnerships to Drive AI in Higher Education The Future of EdTech

Google is actively pursuing strategic partnerships to accelerate the integration and adoption of Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies within the higher education sector. The initiative signals a push to leverage AI for enhanced learning, research, and administrative efficiency on college campuses.

Higher Ed Tech Startup Launches New Product To Help Students Navigate Transfer Options PR Newswire

A higher education technology startup has introduced a new product designed to simplify the complex process of transferring for students. The tool aims to help students easily navigate and understand their options for transferring credits and enrollment between different institutions.

Our Latest Podcast Episodes

Ricardo Rengifo: From Filing Cabinets to a Future-Ready Campus Focusing on higher education's digital transformation, Ricardo shares strategies for adopting technology to replace outdated manual operations, leading to greater operational efficiency and an improved student and faculty experience.

Matthew Seitz: Humans, AI, and Business Impact at UW-Madison’s AI Hub Matthew explores the strategic collaboration between human talent and AI, detailing how the UW-Madison AI Hub uses successful integration strategies to drive measurable business impact. His insights focus on fostering innovation and achieving institutional goals through operational AI adoption.

Nick Cawthon: Responsible AI and Strategic Design Nick provides a critical overview of ethical and responsible AI design, detailing the necessary principles for creating new AI tools that are fair, transparent, and strategically aligned with institutional and educational objectives.

Dipesh Jain: AI, Accessibility, and the Future of Learning with Magic EdTech Dipesh discusses the powerful role of AI in driving educational accessibility and equity. He shares how Magic EdTech is leveraging AI tools to break down traditional barriers and create an inclusive future through personalized learning experiences.

Highlighting EdTech Connect's trending innovative technology companies transforming the higher education landscape...

Stellic: Degree Management Platform

The end-to-end degree management platform that aligns your campus for on-time graduation. It empowers students for proactive academic planning, allows institutions to scale personalized advising, and provides the data needed for streamlined workflows and strategic student success decisions.

BoodleBox: Generative AI Hub

The single, compliant hub for generative AI. Bundling models like GPT-4o, Claude, and Gemini, it offers course-aligned bots and quick-start commands to streamline academic work. Faculty accelerate preparation (syllabi, rubrics), and students engage in collaborative, citable AI-assisted learning. Built-in usage analytics and FERPA-aware data handling ensure secure adoption and transparent assessment.

Automation Anywhere: Robotic Process Automation



Transform multilingual content handling with RPA. Software bots automate the process—extracting text, running machine translation, and routing exceptions to human reviewers. Non-developers can easily manage workflows via a visual designer, while central governance ensures compliance. Deployable on cloud or campus clusters, the solution scales efficiently to handle peak workloads year-round.

GrayDI: Program Evaluation System (PES)

Provides colleges and universities with an integrated platform to assess academic programs using real-time market, enrollment, and cost data. This tool helps institutions align program offerings to student demand and workforce trends, strengthen fiscal performance, and streamline overall program portfolio decisions.



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