Mar 22, 2026
In the latest episode of "Student Affairs Voices from the Field," Dr. Jill Creighton sits down live at the NASPA Annual Conference 2026 in Kansas City with Dr. Mike Christakis, Dr. Darby Roberts, and Dr. Karnell McConnell-Black to spotlight the launch of NASPA’s new strategic plan. If you are a student affairs professional seeking to understand the direction of our field and NASPA’s commitment to its members, this episode is a must-listen.
Redefining Strategic Planning – With Purpose and Community
This year marks a pivotal moment as NASPA introduces a three-year plan shaped by intentional listening, member engagement, and a forward-thinking approach. Dr. Mike Christakis walks us through the timeline and evolution, highlighting how NASPA paused its planning to let new leadership take root before embarking on a truly inclusive process, engaging members across regions and divisions. The driving force? Ensuring that every voice, from new professionals to seasoned leaders, informs and benefits from the association’s direction.
Five Strategic Priorities That Put Members First
The discussion unpacks NASPA's five strategic pillars:
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Elevating the Value of Student Affairs: As debates about the relevance of higher education continue, the plan purposefully centers the impact of student affairs and the stories that shape our work.
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Enhancing Career Pathways and Wellbeing: Retention and growth of professionals—across all stages—receives renewed attention, coupled with a focus on wellbeing that mirrors today’s complex campus realities.
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Providing Timely Advocacy and Resources: With shifting policies impacting each region and institution, NASPA is committed to actionable and relevant support for its diverse membership
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Strengthening Member Experience and Organizational Resilience: By modernizing technology and financial models, the association aims for seamless connections and equitable opportunities regardless of location or job title
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Advancing Inclusive and Impactful Governance: Leadership opportunities and transparent processes remain at the forefront, encouraging broader engagement and sustainable growth for the association
Why Tune In?
This episode is more than an announcement—it’s an invitation to be part of NASPA’s ongoing story. You’ll hear firsthand how assessment, feedback, and continuous improvement shape the plan’s “living document” status, and how every member, no matter your involvement level, stands to benefit from the next chapter.
Ready to elevate, strengthen, and advance your student affairs journey? Listen now to understand how NASPA’s new strategic plan is shaping the future—and how you can be a part of it.
TRANSCRIPT
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:00:01]:
Welcome to Student Affairs Voices from the Field, the podcast where
we share your student affairs stories from fresh perspectives to
seasoned experts. Brought to you by NASPA, we curate free and
accessible professional development for higher education
professionals wherever you happen to be. This is Season 14,
continuing our conversation on the value of student affairs. I'm
Dr. Jill Creighton, she/her/hers, your SA Voices from the Field
host. Welcome back to the annual conference 2026 here in Kansas
City, Missouri, and it's always my pleasure to sit down with guests
in real life. So today we have 3 wonderful folks with us who have
been working so hard on NASPA's new strategic plan, which launches
this month, March 2026. So our first guest, you heard from before,
very proud to have you back, and you are now tied with Kevin
Krueger for the most appearances on SA Voices.
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:00:50]:
We've got Dr. Mike Christakis, our outgoing board chair.
Dr. Mike Christakis [00:00:52]:
Wow, thank you, pleasure to be here, Jill.
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:00:54]:
Next up, we have first-time guest Dr. Darby Robert.
Dr. Darby Roberts [00:00:55]:
Howdy, I'm Glad to be here.
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:00:58]:
And finally, we have second-time guest Dr. Carnell
McConnell-Black.
Dr. Karnell McConnell-Black [00:01:02]:
Hey, y'all.
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:01:02]:
So the three of our guests today have been at the helm of this
redefined strategic planning process for NASPA, which is now live
on the NASPA website. So Mike, I'm going to start with you. Can you
tell us a little bit about how we got here? Why now? Why a new
strategic plan?
Dr. Mike Christakis [00:01:17]:
Great question. So the association had a strategic plan for a
period of time, actually leading up to when Dr. Parnell started as
president, and the board at that particular time intentionally
decided to push off the development of the next strategic plan to
allow NASPA's new president to get started. And so when Amelia got
into the seat, the board again took up the idea of what a new plan
would look like. And that began when Ana González, who's chair,
tapped Lincoln Johnson as the at-large member. And that's when the
initial development occurred. And then last year in New Orleans,
when I assumed the role of chair, is when things really got started
and we launched the development, uh, of the plan. And that's where
we're at now.
Dr. Mike Christakis [00:02:00]:
So that process between New Orleans and Kansas City has included
serving our members, doing a lot of listening with our members at
various convenings, regional convenings, divisional meetings, and
the like that really began to help inform what the plan would look
like. And that's what has brought us basically a year post-New
Orleans to where we are here now in Kansas City. We're in the
process of unveiling NASPA's new strategic plan that will take us
from 2026 through 2029.
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:02:26]:
All right. And we've got, like I said, Carnell and Darby with us
today. How did Darby and Carnell get involved in this project for
us?
Dr. Mike Christakis [00:02:32]:
So Darby got engaged because when I became chair-elect, I had the
pleasure of appointing an at-large member. And Darby and I had
first met actually through our mutual involvement with the
assessment, evaluation, and research knowledge community. And so
when it dawned on me that the strategic planning process would fall
as part of my charge as chair, Darby was one of the first calls I
made. I will admit she didn't answer initially, but we finally
connected and I shared with her that I wanted her to join the board
as an at-large member, specifically to work on the strategic plan
as a member of the steering committee in particular. And so that's
how Darby Darby Roberts came to be a part of this process.
Recently, Carnell was elected as a regional director, and so the
representation of our regional directors, I think, was critically
important throughout this process. So we invited Carnell as an
important and strong voice among our regional leadership to also
serve on the steering committee.
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:03:19]:
I'll say high five for Region 5, Carnell.
Dr. Karnell McConnell-Black [00:03:22]:
Region 5!
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:03:23]:
I may be overseas now, but I'm always Region 5 in my heart. So very
excited to have you all on here. So I'd love to hear from the two
of you, Darby and Carnell. You come on board for this project. It's
a daunting thing to say, please redo the strategic plan for NASPA
and please lead this process, go. Can you talk about your process
of moving forward from this idea to realization?
Dr. Darby Roberts [00:03:44]:
One of the things I appreciated about this process, it was very
purposeful, very timely. We didn't want to rush the process and
spend the amount of time we needed to talk about what's our future
vision, what's our future mission. And then from there saying, if
that's what we believe in and strive for, what are the things that
we really want to do for the association and setting up the
strategic priorities before getting into how we're actually going
to do the strategic plan. And so I think it's been very
enlightening to take all the feedback that the membership has
given, working with the board, working with the staff to come up
with a plan that is a really solid plan for us for the next 3
years. I would also just add the element of our members' experience
was a key component. And as you look through all the elements, not
just for the current day headwinds that we face within higher
education, but also the day-to-day experiences that our colleagues
are navigating on their campuses and in the world, that we have the
opportunity to focus in on how they themselves are supported
through the association.
Dr. Karnell McConnell-Black [00:04:41]:
I would also just add that the element of our members' experience
was a, a key component. And as you look through all the elements,
not only just for current day headwinds that we face within higher
education, but also the day-to-day experiences that our colleagues
are navigating on their campuses and in the world, that we have an
opportunity to focus in on how they themselves are supported
through the association.
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:05:05]:
It's also a very different thing to create a strategic plan for an
organization, an association versus our campuses, I always think
it's kind of interesting to try to refocus our brains on what do
our members need as opposed to what do our students need or our
staff need. So how did that play a role in this process?
Dr. Karnell McConnell-Black [00:05:20]:
Well, I will say as an initial starting point, again, we are
thinking about what are the current day challenges, but also
thinking about the future and how do we find the intersections of
both what we need now and what we need in the future and to be
prepared for whatever may come our way. But I think at the heart of
it is our members are always, I think through this piece around
feedback and getting feedback from the membership, there are clear
elements around what's the value of their engagement or their value
of being a NASPA member. And when we can focus in on that and
strengthen that, I think that ultimately strengthens the experience
for our own individual campuses as well.
Dr. Darby Roberts [00:05:56]:
So I think that a little bit to that is that we did talk about the
students and where you should go, and our heart is with students.
One of the things that I think about reflecting on this process is
today, if we take care of our membership and we take care of the
folks on campuses who are doing the work, and we do that really
well, they will take care of the students and be better prepared to
do that when we're providing the support for them in the
association.
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:06:19]:
I had Dr. Parnell in a couple of the meetings I was in throughout
the week this week, and one of the things she kept emphasizing is
what's the ROI? What's the return on investment for a NASPA member
in terms of our institutional dollars, our individual membership
dollars, our travel and professional development experiences? I
think it's been a theme since I've been a NASPA member, which is
like 17, 18 years now, that, uh, travel budgets have been getting
cut every year since my first year in the profession. So let's talk
about how this strategic plan reflects this push for making sure
that NASPA is engaged in a positive return on investment for our
members?
Dr. Mike Christakis [00:06:52]:
I think this is an important question, and I think just to
underscore some of what Carnell and Darby have been referring to,
to this point, this is a little bit of a departure for us as an
association to be leading a strategic planning process and
articulating a plan that does begin with our members and our member
experience. And so we can get into the priorities in a little bit,
but at the end of the day, it's been informed by member feedback.
So talking a lot this last year, year and a half about what career
pathways look like. We've been talking about our employees'
wellbeing across the association, across the profession. How are we
providing our members with timely resources to help them do their
work on their campuses and to expand on what we were saying, that
how does their NASPA membership and their NASPA experience look and
feel like given real resource constraints, both for institutions
and frankly for members of our association. And so how we deliver
on those promises, those practices, those programs, that's where I
think Dr. Parker Arnell and the team right now are taking this plan
and trying to realize and actualize how we can get it as close to
our members as possible. Given that, again, we want to center their
experience, we want to make it as enriching and as positive to
their career trajectory as possible, regardless of what point in
their career they're at.
Dr. Mike Christakis [00:08:06]:
The plan needs to be as relevant to the brand new professional who
might have joined us for the first time last night at our opening
reception, or to the senior student affairs officer who was at at
their institute Sunday morning when the conference kicked off.
We've got to be relevant for all those groups and all of our
members, and I think consistent with the ROI for those members.
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:08:26]:
So this is supposed to be 2026 to 2029, so a 3-year arc, very
achievable. When I look at the strategic priorities and long-term
goals, I'm seeing a very clear member focus, which I think is
always really important to NASPA, but also something that's quite
flexible given that the times we live in continue to be
unprecedented, and all of us would like to see some precedented
times. But I'm going to talk through what these 5 points are, and
then ask you to chat to us about how you got here, and also maybe
anyone else who was on the team to help you get there. So the first
one is to elevate the value of student affairs. Our whole podcast
season, this season and last, have been on the value of student
affairs. And if you haven't gone back and listened to the episode
on the new report that's come out with a toolkit, please go do
that. That featured a past NASPA board chair and a couple pillars
of our profession. We also have enhance the career pathways and
wellbeing of student affairs professionals.
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:09:19]:
Third is provide timely advocacy, policy, and practice resources,
which we just did an episode on the NASPA Policy Hub with Diana
Ali, who's one of our NASPA staffers. Fourth, we have strengthen
member experience and organizational resilience. And finally,
advance inclusive and impactful governance. So given all of those,
let's take them one by one, starting with elevating the value of
student affairs. What does this mean for the association and how is
that going to affect our work for the next 3 years?
Dr. Mike Christakis [00:09:45]:
I'll dive in on that one because I think that increasingly in the
higher ed landscape, we continue to be challenged in sort of the
relevance in our work. Obviously, we talk a lot about student
success, retention, persistence, completion, career outcomes, life
and career outcomes, and the like. We've said, and Amelia has been
good about saying to all of our teams on campuses, our work is
critically important. And so we thought there was an opportunity
through the strategic plan to articulate what we do what our
members do on our campuses, and the impact it has in the broader
higher ed landscape. That is as much about NASPA, that first
priority, as it is about how we align with the larger, I'll say,
presidential associations across the higher ed. And for this, for
us, it starts with our members. It's the real stories, the real
impact that we have, but it's taking those stories and making them
aware to folks who are partners with us on our campuses. And again,
importantly, across the higher education spectrum.
Dr. Karnell McConnell-Black [00:10:38]:
I would just also add in this space of student affairs and
elevating the value of Student Affairs. Again, as we, as you
mentioned, we are facing lots of headwinds around the value of
higher education in general. And I wanna say that student affairs
plays an integral part in that work to help educate not only our
campus community, but also the communities in which our campuses
operate within too. So the cities, the towns, rural communities,
our small colleges, all of the places that we do, do this. And so
for me, it's been, it was really important that we figure out how
to articulate this and provide tools or philosophical frameworks
for our campuses to be able to say, let's have a conversation about
this at the highest levels of our institutional governance. How do
we have conversations with lawmakers in our cities or in our
states? And then being able to have, again, this common thread as a
whole association about elevating this. And so again, at the micro
level, but also at the macro level and having this integrated
approach to be able to have one voice in a way to elevate the
profession.
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:11:36]:
Our next section is enhancing the career pathways and wellbeing of
student affairs professionals, which I feel like has always been at
the core of NASPA's mission in general. So why this framing? And
why now?
Dr. Darby Roberts [00:11:47]:
I'm really excited about this strategic priority because we have
lots of conversation about how we recruit, retain, and grow staff
in this profession. And in recent years, that has changed, and it's
been a little tougher of an uphill climb. And so I really
appreciate the thought about how we get staff into the profession,
how we retain them growing from grad student to senior student
affairs officer, that there's something for everybody. And we need
to pay attention to that, which I think also thinking about when
people leave the profession, are they doing that in their first 5
years and not staying in there? I think really focus on the value
of being in the profession, as well as what variety of career
pathways there are. And I think coupled with the wellbeing piece is
so important because even back from when I was a new professional,
I feel like it's so much more complex to work in the profession
right now. And if our staff aren't doing well, then our students
aren't doing well. And so focusing on the things that we can do to
provide a supportive environment, to provide opportunities, to
really focus on the joy that we find in the profession and building
that through the pathways, through engagement with our members
too.
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:12:49]:
I think you've really sold our keynote speaker that's coming up as
well. We have Dr. Kevin McClure coming up in half an hour in real
time, but you'll get Kevin McClure's episode the week after this
one. His new book is called The Caring University, so stay tuned
for that episode. Our third priority is provide timely advocacy,
policy, and practice resources, which I feel like this one's really
easy to say and really hard to execute.
Dr. Karnell McConnell-Black [00:13:11]:
I would just say around this space here is I agree in some ways
that the, it's hard to think about the execution because again,
when we think about not only just being a global association. The
needs of our global members are very different than the needs of
our members within the US. And then even within the US, within
different states, different regions, their experience and needs are
also vast here. And so while it's complex, I think it's also
ambitious for us, and it's also a responsible thing for us to do,
is to be able to give our members, again, the resources and tools
that we need. I mean, NASPA is structured in a way that allows us
to be able to respond to our members in different areas, in
different regions, intentionally, because we are not a monolith. We
are all bound by different limitations, barriers, where we may be.
But I think at the heart of this, it is about what are the
actionable and tangible tools that folks can actually utilize to be
able to support, again, their overall institution and also the
efforts that are centered around things that'll support students to
get to graduation and have successful careers or just successful
lives in general.
Dr. Mike Christakis [00:14:12]:
I also just wanna call out the great work of Janai Chandler, who is
our Vice President for Policy and Research for NASPA. Obviously
there's a lot happening at the federal and state level as it
relates to, to policy. And I think that Dr. Chandler and her team
have done some really, doing really great work already in providing
resources to our members in this space.
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:14:29]:
If you haven't checked out the NASPA Policy Hub yet, I strongly
encourage you to do that because there's a state-by-state tracker
that you can check out, which we know that what's happening in
Oregon State, where Carnell is, and where Darby is in Texas, and
where Mike is in New York— very, very different policy rules
applying to all three of those states. And some of us are affected
by all three things. So at the table today, we've got four
different institution types, three states, and two countries. And
between us navigating policy in the profession is a little funky
right now. The next one is strengthening the member experience and
organizational resilience. So the member experience, again, I feel
like the core and bread and butter of NASPA has been creating
community for student affairs professionals to come together.
Organizational resilience is a little bit of a new one. So let's
dig into that part.
Dr. Karnell McConnell-Black [00:15:13]:
We have so many volunteer leaders, a part of the association, and
because we are a member-driven, member volunteer association, we
have to be mindful and thoughtful about, we got folks who their
full-time most jobs are, they're on their campuses, and then
they're doing this as a service to the profession and to their
colleagues. And so I think it's important again, to reduce as many
barriers for them to be successful in their roles as leaders in the
association. And in some ways, this is like the organizational
aspect. How do we support the folks who are helping to support the
profession and their colleagues? So I think the other piece here is
NASPA has so many offerings for our members. And so how do we,
again, create clear and accessible ways for them to be able to get
connected with that content in the right time, at the right point
in time that they need it at the right point in their career. And
again, thinking about it from that perspective. And then I think
also at the end of the day, when we look at overall the
association, the association also, like many other associations,
are also faced with challenges and headwinds from many aspects. And
so, this really gets to the mechanics of how we also run the
association too.
Dr. Karnell McConnell-Black [00:16:17]:
And I think that's an important part of having a sound foundation
in which we can actually do all the other work as well.
Dr. Darby Roberts [00:16:23]:
I would say from my experience throughout my years in NASPA, it's a
huge organization and it's overwhelming to a lot of people to think
about the opportunities available or coming to a national
conference with thousands of their closest friends, as I describe
it. But really thinking about how we're providing those smaller
opportunities for people to get engaged. So I really came up
through the knowledge community process and got involved in the
assessment, evaluation, and research knowledge community as a
member, and then took on leadership. And then that gave me a better
perspective of what the organization was about and what different
opportunities there were. I met a whole bunch of great people who
then said, oh, you might be great at this, and then was on the
mid-level steering committee. So I had the opportunities through
that. But I don't know that in the past we've done a great job to
really clarify some of those roles and opportunities that really
helps a brand new member figure out where their place is, where
their people are, and where their community is. That really helps
them get engaged and be committed to the organization.
Dr. Darby Roberts [00:17:16]:
So I think this is a piece of that to say, we understand it's a
very complex organization. Let's break it down and provide those
opportunities for people to get engaged as they can and and as
they're interested.
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:17:27]:
This year in Kansas City, we just had a conversation with José Luis
Rivera, who is this year's conference chair, and he mentioned that
a full 20% of our attendees this year are first-time attendees to
NASPA, which is a lot of people who are trying to figure out what
this big thing is. There's a couple of sub-bullets in here that I
think are particularly interesting. The first one is about
modernizing our technological infrastructure. I think we all have
had moments of frustration with the NASPA website over the
years.
Dr. Christopher Lewis [00:17:54]:
No.
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:17:54]:
And that's something that we can acknowledge, and I know that NASPA
has been thinking about this for for a long time, both with the
website or other member connection points within infrastructure. Is
there anything you can tell us in a preview about what we might
expect from a technological update?
Dr. Mike Christakis [00:18:07]:
I can't give you a lot of the nitty-gritty, but I can tell you that
Amelia Parnell has been zeroing in on this almost from day one. She
has shared on several occasions with the board and other
stakeholders of her vision for what she characterizes as a
Netflix-like experience when you log Netflix, NASPA.
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:18:25]:
Okay.
Dr. Mike Christakis [00:18:26]:
What I really think it's trying to get at is a curated web
experience based on what the members' interests are. We've got
13,000+ members of the association. There's 4,300 here at this
conference in Kansas City. We certainly acknowledge the website
needs work, and I think that Amelia and Amy Shophorn, who's our
executive vice president, are very keyed into that. And I think
that will be something that you'll see some changes in fairly
quickly going forward.
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:18:51]:
The other piece in this area is to update and implement a new
financial model model to ensure solvency, transparency, and impact.
Now, I don't think the average NASPA member thinks a lot about the
finances of the association. I've served on the regional board, and
I'm in the global division, been in public policy, and so I have, I
think, maybe slightly more awareness around the different funding
models that feed divisions, knowledge communities, regional boards,
national gatherings, all of that sort of thing. So why put this
priority here, and what do you want members to know about the
financial components of NASPA?
Dr. Karnell McConnell-Black [00:19:23]:
I'll take a first stab, and I think part of, of that piece that's
there is because regardless Regardless of whether you are a global
member and you decide that you're coming back to the US and coming
to Region 5, that just for example, that you would have a seamless
experience across that. So the idea is that regardless of where
you're at, that again, this membership, it's, it's again connected
back to the membership experience that we want to have consistent
major milestone benchmarks, you know, demarcations about the
experience that folks have while also recognizing that again, each
area and each region will look different. But when you think about
that from a financial standpoint, some regions and some divisions
have different funds. And so how do we have some consistency in
that while also at the same time keeping the quality of, of again,
the programming at the same level? Again, when you think about
resources, programs that have higher resources versus those that
have lower resources does play into the, the quality of an
experience that a member has. So how do we have that consistent
regardless of whether you're in a division, whether you're, you're
in a global, you know, the global, global division or even in the
different regions. And so So again, Region 5 being very small in
member numbers, but large contiguously, the largest contiguous
space region, you know, it's important that we try to figure out
how to make that work, knowing that again, our members are
international.
Dr. Mike Christakis [00:20:40]:
Just to underscore what Carnell was saying, some of this is dollars
and cents, but it's not the singular driver. It really is exactly
what Carnell was getting at, which is how are we serving our
members, which I think goes to the initial point we started with.
There's a lot of entry points for the association. Darby alluded to
her own entry point, to some extent my own as well, for the
knowledge communities. Knowledge communities are funded a certain
way. Carnell noted divisions are funded a certain way. Regions are
certainly funded in, in a different way. And I think as the board
was looking at this very thoughtfully, we were really trying to
consider the best ways to make the best use of members' limited
resources, the investment they're making both in their time and in
the association.
Dr. Mike Christakis [00:21:18]:
So that's where this priority I really, really I really think does
have tremendous potential for us in terms of the long-term
trajectory and future of the association.
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:21:25]:
I'll also just say happy birthday, Knowledge Communities. Knowledge
Communities are turning 25 this year, and we have Dr. Betty Simmons
getting her Distinguished Pillar of the Profession Award. Betty,
also fondly known in ASPA as the mother of the Knowledge
Communities. Our last priority is to advance inclusive and
impactful governance. So I think this is one of those things that
could be read as a lot of buzzwords, but should have a lot of oomph
and meaning behind it. What would a member want or need to know
about this aspect?
Dr. Mike Christakis [00:21:52]:
So I think this one is in particular speaks to how our members
beyond just their experience or experiences are positioned to help
lead the association. And again, as I noted a minute ago, there's a
lot of entry points. There's a lot of opportunities for volunteers
to get engaged beyond just their engagement opportunities to lead.
And so this particular priority really does get at some shifts
we've made in a more consistent framework for governance across
regions, divisions, knowledge communities, how we are recruiting,
training volunteer leaders, how we're supporting them in their
roles. This is an effort to to again enhance what that experience
looks like as much for the member as well as for them, how the
member is helping lead the association going forward.
Dr. Darby Roberts [00:22:31]:
And I do think taking the time to really think through this very
purposefully is going to help members understand and want to be
engaged and want to stay engaged, particularly in that involvement
in leadership. Whether it's a knowledge community, it's really
saying that this is a smooth process, it's well thought out, it
makes sense, and the more that we can I think the more we can
retain people interested in those leadership positions, interested
in getting involved in knowledge communities or the small college
division or the community college division to really say, this is a
positive experience. I trust in the process. I'm engaged and
satisfied, and I want to continue to do the things and grow in the
association. So I think this too is really important time in the
association. And it's a really important priority for us to move
the association forward. Forward.
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:23:17]:
We've talked through what the priorities are. Now let's talk about
how we're going to use them to activate the work across the next 3
years. What does that look like at the board level, at our regional
areas, through our divisions, KCs, etc.?
Dr. Mike Christakis [00:23:29]:
So what happens next for us after we begin to introduce this plan
this month is we'll begin, and we've already begun here at the
annual conference, to have our various constituent groups take
these priorities and see how they can see themselves in them.
That's been a consistent theme throughout this process. And
regions, our community's divisions, steering committees will all be
in a position to consider how the work they're doing, the resources
they're providing, the programs they're sponsoring, are helping
drive the association's strategic priorities forward. The other
part that I think is important is that the work that Dr. Parnell,
NASPA's president, is, is doing now with the executive team and
staff more broadly across NASPA. They have, even before we got to
this point here in Kansas City, already begun looking at
operationalizing action steps to help drive a lot of these things
we alluded to. The website is an example. That's not one of those
things that is volunteer-driven per se.
Dr. Mike Christakis [00:24:24]:
That's an operational function that, again, Amelia, Amy Shophorn,
and the team are very aware of and cognizant of and are developing
action steps to help improve and drive that forward. So it's as
much about our volunteers and our various constituent stakeholder
groups and how they're leading in this space as it is about how the
staff has put together action steps over the course of the next 3
years.
Dr. Karnell McConnell-Black [00:24:45]:
I would just also add one of the other elements of this is is that
this is one NASPA. And so as the Region V Director, one of the
things that we'll be doing is actually taking, again, the strategic
priorities and aligning our regional priorities to these. And it's
an opportunity to also for us to refine that. So whatever we have
been, it's not to say that we're just going to stop doing all the
things that we've been doing, but we're going to say, okay, what is
actually critical now? What is most important? What is in alignment
with the strategic plan? And then also how is that connected back
to our region? Because again, our region has specific needs as
well. So again, that alignment piece is going to happen. For us
where we're going to take what we've done, realign it, and
actualize it on the other end.
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:25:25]:
If I'm an average member who's maybe involved in one knowledge
community and I'm very busy on my campus, don't have a lot of time
to be more engaged than that, or maybe don't want to be, either way
is completely fine. How is the strategic plan going to play out in
my member experience?
Dr. Darby Roberts [00:25:38]:
I like to think it'll provide a seamless opportunity for you to
find the resources that you need. If it's a particular topic, a
particular issue, a way to get involved, involved, to get
information. I think they're going to see this as a very smooth
process and that the information that they're going to get and the
timeliness of it, the correct communication, that it's going to
help them trust the organization to say it's moving in the right
direction. I'm committed to it, even if I'm not completely involved
in everything all the time, that it's of value to them as a student
affairs professional to invest their membership dollars in the
organization, to keep it strong, to keep it thriving, to ensure the
long-term survival and thriving of the organization.
Organization.
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:26:17]:
What haven't I asked you about regarding the Strategic Plan that
you really wanted to make sure you got out to the members
today?
Dr. Mike Christakis [00:26:23]:
We were really intentional in identifying 3 words that we thought
really get at the core of what this plan is about. So as you see
the various assets that will be going out that introduce this
Strategic Plan, you'll notice that we're really zeroing in on 3
keywords: elevating, strengthening, and advancing. And we tie those
words to the member experience. So it's elevating, strengthening,
advancing your member experience is the tagline that we're— that's
really what this plan is ultimately about. And as we've talked
about over the last little bit, it comes in various forms, but we
really, really do believe that this will help position the
association for the next 3 years. But I think importantly, help
strengthen our members, both in their experience and the
association. Also importantly is in the important work that we're
engaged in on our campuses.
Dr. Karnell McConnell-Black [00:27:11]:
And I will just add that while you may not see very clearly the
element around community and connection, community is still at the
heart of what we do. And so that interconnectedness of this, this
is not done in a silo, that this is not done just individual
groups, but this is all interconnected, that getting back to why
we're here to support our students and support each other.
Dr. Darby Roberts [00:27:32]:
And I have to put on my assessment hat. Yes, please. With this plan
comes assessment and to say, how are we doing the things we said
we're going to do? How can we improve? How can we continue to hear
the voices from our members? How are we making this a living
document? So it's not just 3 years from now, we're going to assess
how well we did. It's we're going to do it in a very focused,
organized way to continually improve. It's not just something
sitting on a shelf. It's actually meant to be a very living, very
dynamic, and very purposeful in moving forward.
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:28:04]:
I love that you brought us there. So for our listeners who have not
yet met Darby, she has a well-earned reputation for being one of
student affairs' best storytellers through data. And so we do hope
to have you on in the fall to talk a little bit more about data and
storytelling, primarily because as we've gone through this season
of The Value of Student Affairs, the one consistent thing is
everyone has said we need to do better at telling our story as a
profession. Every single person that's come on, and that is very
telling that we all want to do that, but maybe don't know how to do
that. So it'll be a good conversation.
Dr. Darby Roberts [00:28:33]:
I'm looking forward to it.
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:28:35]:
Before we go to our break, is there anyone you'd like to
acknowledge for also serving on the working group that helped us
get to this strategic plan.
Dr. Mike Christakis [00:28:42]:
I want to call out Ana Gonzales, who initiated this work, Lincoln
Johnson, who was Ana's at-large appointee. Given that Ana knew that
this work was coming up, Lincoln was great in helping to shepherd
this effort early on and was a continued champion of this
throughout the process. I'll also call out Darrell Holliman, our
board chair-elect, who's been instrumental in this process and will
take up the implementation of this going forward.
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:29:05]:
We'll give a special shout out to Lincoln, who has announced his
retirement this spring. He's at his very last NASPA right now. He's
been a pillar of the profession and a huge part of Region 5 and
everything that's happened in student affairs and NASPA for the
last several decades. So Lincoln, we're so proud of you. We're
going to miss having you here every year, but we hope that you'll
come back and hang out. It's time to take a quick break and toss it
over to producer Chris to learn what's going on in the NASPA world.
World.
Dr. Christopher Lewis [00:29:31]:
Thanks, Jill. So excited to be back in the NASPA world, and there's
a ton of things happening in NASPA. For those of you that were able
to join us in Kansas City, thank you. Thank you so much for coming
out and being a part of the memorable conference that we had. Our
president, Dr. Amelia Parnell, said at the pending KC Kickoff that
the best place to be in good times, in challenging times, in okay
times, in all times is together in community. And we definitely had
that opportunity together at the NASPA 2026 conference. If you are
not able to join us in person, I still would highly encourage you
to get involved.
Dr. Christopher Lewis [00:30:11]:
Find new ways to be able to connect with others, to engage with the
association, engage with other people in the association, because
by doing that, you continue to elevate, strengthen, and advance
your own member experience, as well as providing you with an
opportunity to learn, to grow, and to be able to be connected with
others that are dealing with similar issues that you're dealing
with on your own campuses. While it's still a ways away, I do
encourage you to think about attending the 2027 NASPA Annual
Conference. Put this on your calendar today. The 2027 NASPA Annual
Conference is March 6th through the 10th in National Harbor,
Maryland. So even if you don't know if you can go right now, put it
on calendar, mark it off, because by doing that, you're taking the
first step. And then you have an opportunity as the registration
opens to be a part of the fun next year in Maryland. And next
year's conference has a theme of We Are One NASPA. And there are 3
upcoming information sessions to find out more about the 2027
conference theme.
Dr. Christopher Lewis [00:31:19]:
On Friday, April 10th at 1:00 PM, you can learn about the focus
area, leveraging Changing the Business of Student Affairs. On
Friday, April 24th at 1:00 PM Eastern Standard Time, you can find
out about the focus area, the Human-Digital Continuum: Leading with
Intention in a Tech-Driven World. And on Friday, May 8th at 1:00 PM
Eastern Standard Time, you can learn about the focus area, Adapting
with Purpose and Agency in the New Era of Student Affairs. All
three of these sessions can be found in the NASPA online learning
learning community, and you can find out more by going to
learning.naspa.org. A recent email was sent out to all NASPA
members about a follow-up brief on administration and governance.
As you might remember, NASPA came out with a number of top issues
in student affairs that were provided back in 2025, and
administration and governance was one of the large areas that came
out in the research. Some of the reasons for that is that
compliance with federal, state and accreditation standards
continues to be a top priority for senior student affairs leaders,
with 68% of VPSAs ranking it as very important to their
institutions in NASPA's 2025 Top Issues in Student Affairs survey.
The follow-up brief that I mentioned builds on the findings from
the survey, specifically focusing on issues within the area of
administration and governance.
Dr. Christopher Lewis [00:32:44]:
Key strategies for advancing administration and for governance
included in this follow-up brief include embedding policy updates
in regular meetings and professional development, creating rapid
internal communication channels, developing talking points for
students and campus advocacy, and connecting with faculty on
applied governance simulations. You can find these follow-up briefs
and other white papers that have been developed by NASPA for NASPA
members by going to the NASPA website under Publications
presentations, and then white papers. Finally, there's a new issue
of the Leadership Exchange that was released right before the
conference on assessment with purpose. If you have a true interest
in assessment, this issue of the Leadership Exchange is definitely
for you. Whether you currently do assessment in the work that
you're doing on a regular basis or you want to get more involved,
this Leadership Exchange issue delves deep into everything that you
can think of in regards to assessment on your campus. I highly
encourage you to take a look at it. You can to the NASPA website,
go under Publications, and access the electronic copy of the
Leadership Exchange today. Every week we're going to be sharing
some amazing things that are happening within the association.
Dr. Christopher Lewis [00:33:57]:
So we are going to be able to try and keep you up to date on
everything that's happening and allow for you to be able to get
involved in different ways because the association is as strong as
its members. And for all of us, we have to find our place within
the association, whether whether it be getting involved with a
knowledge community, giving back within one of the, the centers or
the divisions of the association. And as you're doing that, it's
important to be able to identify for yourself, where do you fit?
Where do you want to give back? Each week, we're hoping that we
will share some things that might encourage you, might allow for
you to be able to get some ideas that will provide you with an
opportunity to be able to Hey, I see myself in that knowledge
community. I see myself doing something like that, or encourage you
in other ways that allow for you to be able to think beyond what's
available right now, to offer other things to the association, to
bring your gifts, your talents to the association and to all of the
members within the association. Because through doing that, all of
us are stronger, and the association is better. Tune in again next
week as we find out more about what is happening in NASPA.
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:35:18]:
Chris, thank you so much for continuing to keep us updated on
what's going on in and around NASPA at this very special Strategic
Plan Edition. Now, Darby, as our first timer, you get the first
crack at our lightning round. I've got 7 questions for you in about
90 seconds. Are you ready to go?
Dr. Darby Roberts [00:35:33]:
I'm ready.
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:35:33]:
All right, question 1. We're at a conference, so if you were at a
conference keynote speaker, what would your entrance music be?
Dr. Darby Roberts [00:35:39]:
Oh my gosh, we had a question about this the other day when we were
in a board meeting about our favorite song and why. And I chose
Footloose from 1984 because that's about my age time growing up,
but because it's high energy, it's about working hard, playing
hard, and just a lot of fun.
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:35:54]:
Number 2, when you were 5 years old, what did you want to be when
you grew up?
Dr. Darby Roberts [00:35:57]:
I think I wanted to be a flight attendant.
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:35:59]:
Number 3, who's your most influential professional mentor?
Dr. Darby Roberts [00:36:02]:
Oh my gosh. I'm going to shout out to Gene Jarsky, who is retired,
but he was my advisor when I was an undergraduate student and
really exposed me to student affairs as a profession and has been a
great colleague, friend, and mentor over the decades.
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:36:14]:
Number 4, your essential student affairs read.
Dr. Darby Roberts [00:36:17]:
Well, I might be biased, but there is a book called Student Affairs
Assessment: Theory to Practice by Henning and Roberts. That's a
wonderful book about assessment and student affairs.
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:36:24]:
Might you know the Roberts of that book? Number 5, the best TV show
you've been binging lately.
Dr. Darby Roberts [00:36:30]:
I'm not a huge show binger, but I do like this show on PBS. It's
called Miss Charlotte and the Duke, and it's about this woman who
becomes a private investigator in the hundreds when that's not what
women do. And it's a fun, witty show.
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:36:43]:
Number 6, the podcast you spent the most hours listening to in the
last year?
Dr. Darby Roberts [00:36:46]:
Well, that's a great question. I'm a big podcast listener, and you
know what, I'm gonna say The Happiness Lab is a really good
podcast. I really enjoy that.
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:36:54]:
And finally, number 7, any shoutouts you'd like to give, personal
or professional?
Dr. Darby Roberts [00:36:58]:
I'm gonna shout out to the assessment, evaluation, and research
knowledge community because they have all my love, and that's where
I really become good friends and colleagues with the folks who are
doing the hard work of student affairs and assessment.
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:37:09]:
And our assessment KC co-chairs were just on last season. So if you
want to listen to them, please go check out that episode. And
Darby, you did great. You've reached the end, which means Carnell,
it is your turn. And we have a different set of questions for you
because you've been on before. So question number 1, the last time
you were here, you got to answer what your entrance music would be.
Would you like to change your song?
Dr. Karnell McConnell-Black [00:37:29]:
Yes, because I represented the region at the regional roll call,
and it was Let's Groove Tonight. So that's going to be the entrance
song.
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:37:38]:
Number 2, what was your undergraduate degree and do you use it in
your work now?
Dr. Karnell McConnell-Black [00:37:42]:
My undergraduate degree was in communication and I use it every
single day.
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:37:46]:
Number 3, your guilty pleasure TV show?
Dr. Karnell McConnell-Black [00:37:48]:
HGTV, all of it. And Bravo. So you said show, but I got channels.
So the Bravo channel, all the Housewives, all of the Below Deck,
all of those.
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:37:59]:
So I do miss having access to HGTV. Number 4, your city is
Portland, so if anyone ever visits Portland, what's the one place
they must eat?
Dr. Karnell McConnell-Black [00:38:08]:
Oh, my favorite place is called Nora's PDX. It is a vegetarian and
vegan restaurant, and they have the best vegan pad thai. And I love
meat, and it is the best pad thai that I've ever had.
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:38:24]:
Number 5, your favorite work-related podcast.
Dr. Karnell McConnell-Black [00:38:27]:
Favorite work— it should be NASWA's podcast, right? But my favorite
work podcast is probably actually On Purpose by Jay Shetty. And it
actually was a good defining moment of like, again, alignment and
all that good stuff.
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:38:42]:
Number 6, your favorite not work-related podcast?
Dr. Karnell McConnell-Black [00:38:45]:
Not work-related podcast. I feel like they're just all integrated.
So I feel like I have the same, I probably have the same
answer.
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:38:52]:
And finally, number 7, any shoutouts you'd like to give, personal
or professional?
Dr. Karnell McConnell-Black [00:38:56]:
High five, Region 5. And I would love to give a shoutout to my
husband, Kelly, and also my alma mater, Loyola University
Chicago.
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:39:06]:
It's been a pleasure having the 3 of you live In person, thank you
so much for taking an hour out of your really busy conference
schedules to sit down and talk about this really important work. If
anyone would like to talk to you after the show airs, how can they
find you?
Dr. Mike Christakis [00:39:19]:
Thanks for having us, Jill. Let me contact Dee on LinkedIn.
Dr. Darby Roberts [00:39:21]:
Thank you, Jill. People can contact Dee by my email,
darbglive@tamu.edu.
Dr. Karnell McConnell-Black [00:39:28]:
And again, thank you for having me as well. And you can contact me
through Instagram. So you can find all the goodies and all the
favorites that I visit.
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:39:38]:
Mike, Darby, Carnell, thank you so much for sharing your voices
with us today.
Dr. Karnell McConnell-Black [00:39:42]:
Thank you.
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:39:49]:
This has been an episode of SA Voices from the Field, brought to
you by NASPA. This show is made possible because of you, the
listeners. We continue to be so grateful that you choose to spend
your time with us. If you'd like to reach the show, you can email
us at savoices@naspa.org. Aspa.org, or find me on LinkedIn by
searching for Dr. Jill L. Creighton. We welcome your feedback and
your topic and guest suggestions always.
Dr. Jill Creighton [00:40:11]:
We'd love it if you take a moment to tell a colleague about the
show and leave us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or
wherever you're listening now. It really does help other student
affairs professionals find the show and helps us to become more
visible in the larger podcasting community. This episode was
produced and hosted by Dr. Jill Creighton. That's Me, produced and
audio engineered by Dr. Chris Lewis. Special thanks to the
University of Michigan Flint for your support as we create this
project. Catch you next time.