Student Affairs Leaders are Higher Education Leaders—and Here’s Why

At many institutions and across our industry, Student Affairs has long held a second-class status in higher education. Although this perception has evolved significantly over time, I’m still struck by how infrequently Student Affairs professionals explicitly frame their work as integral to the future of “higher education”. Too often, their work is viewed through a narrow and outdated lens that fails to capture the full scope of their leadership. 

In reality, their impact reaches beyond the boundaries of Student Affairs, and they help shape nearly every critical facet in the lifecycle of the student experience. What’s needed now is not only a sharper understanding of what Student Affairs leaders contribute to the student experience writ large but a more expansive view of the critical role they play within the ecosystem of higher education. Their voices belong alongside others at the center of the national higher education conversation. 

As I prepared for the 2025 NASPA conference in New Orleans, I found myself reflecting on this important leadership role and its next necessary evolution. In nearly 30 years in Student Affairs, Academic Affairs, and in my firm’s engagement with leaders across the country, we’ve worked alongside chancellors, presidents, provosts, vice presidents, and deans. It has become clear to me that Student Affairs leaders are, and must be, leaders within the broader higher education community and context. 

Student Affairs Leaders are Higher Education Leaders

Our firm’s work in higher education focuses on strategy and leadership. We help organizational leaders think deeply about the difference their institutions aim to make, the values and aspirations that inspire their work, and the outcomes they seek for students, families, institutions, and society.

We get to work in partnership with brilliant, bold, and engaging higher education leaders. We learn what they think, what inspires them, and what drives their decision-making. We see what keeps them up at night and how they manage ambiguity and complexity. Similarly, the senior Student Affairs professionals we encounter are visionary, strategic, and agile leaders who are insightful about the challenges facing our industry.  

Student Affairs leaders are grappling with and contributing to higher education’s most pressing challenges. These leaders contribute to the inputs (e.g. student recruitment), outcomes (e.g. learning, opportunities, and careers), and everything in between. They are the architects and engineers of student experiences that ensure institutions can fulfill their educational and social missions in the context of 21st-century realities.

They are, in many ways, higher education's most agile leaders—and here’s why. 

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They are driving recruitment. 

Recruitment and tuition revenue are the lifeblood of our higher education institutions. Higher Education’s leaders in Student Affairs design and deliver what students and families seek in a college experience. They create and oversee a complex system of programs that support student engagement, leadership, and learning. They provide students with early work experiences and a wide array of co-curricular opportunities to build leadership (and a resume). They serve as critical partners to enrollment managers and help deliver the full scope of services—including career services—that students and families demand.

They are leading retention efforts. 

Retention is a top priority for colleges and universities across the country. These leaders play a crucial role in developing engagement strategies that drive student persistence. Engagement, a key factor in student retention and success, relies on the comprehensive services offered within Student Affairs.

From health and counseling services to career resources and basic needs support, Student Affairs is vital in helping students thrive academically and personally. These leaders make a compelling case for investing in services that boost retention and contribute to students' long-term success. 

They are managing crises and building resilience.

When campuses face disruption—whether public health emergencies, safety threats, social unrest, or national tragedies—Student Affairs leaders are among our institutions’ best leaders. Whether the institution is navigating fire, flood, or friction, they are able to identify strategic options, shape balanced approaches, and deploy tactical solutions that protect community well-being and the institutions they serve. They shape how institutions recover and rebuild. 

They are leading higher education’s response to a national mental health crisis.

Student Affairs professionals are leading the response to an unprecedented national mental health crisis that is reshaping higher education. The rising scale and acuity of student mental health needs is driving systemic and the structural change in higher education. Student Affairs leaders are centering wellness, building campus systems of care, serving students, and partnering with families. 

Prioritizing wellness is now a critical leadership imperative and their innovation and strategic approaches are central to advancing student well-being.

They are building leadership for a principled democracy. 

Student Affairs leaders foster the values of civic and community engagement, critical thinking, ethical leadership, and personal and collective responsibility. These leaders oversee leadership development programs, student governments, model UN programs, and opportunities to dialogue and engage with opposing ideas. They create opportunities for students to integrate their learning, sharpen their thinking, practice how democracy works, and determine how they will participate in it.

In a time of division, disinformation, and dismantling, Student Affairs leaders are wholly invested in educating future leaders who can lead boldly and thoughtfully. 

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The scale of the challenges and opportunities facing higher education demands leadership and alignment across every part of the enterprise. What stays with me after NASPA is not just the complexity of the moment—there has always been complexity—but the caliber of Student Affairs leaders rising to meet it. 

In our strategy and executive development work, we often remind clients that the strategic question is not, “What will we do?” but rather, “What will we do differently?” The question isn’t whether Student Affairs leaders are higher education leaders. The question is whether we’re ready to invite their voices and elevate their work in ways that reflect the full scope and significance of their leadership. 

I look forward to continuing this conversation with many of you.