AI adoption is accelerating across college campuses, and so are the risks.

From students and employees sharing sensitive information with public AI tools to the absence of clear institutional policies, higher education is navigating a security landscape that is evolving faster than most institutions can keep pace with. As generative AI becomes embedded in teaching, learning, research, and operations, colleges and universities must balance innovation with governance, compliance, and risk management.

Unsecured Intelligence: Navigating AI Security
and Compliance in Higher Education

Thursday, June 25
2:00 pm ET / 1:00 pm CT 

Join Dr. Jason Nairn, CISSP, Vice President of Information Technology at Collegis Education, for a practical discussion on the security and compliance challenges surrounding AI in higher education and the steps institutions can take to establish responsible AI governance.

What you’ll learn 

Gain practical insights into the security, compliance, and governance challenges created by AI adoption in higher education.

You’ll hear about:

• Why shadow AI is becoming one of higher education’s fastest-growing security threats
• How sensitive institutional and student data can be exposed through uncontrolled AI tool usage
• FERPA compliance risks and considerations in the age of generative AI
• Practical strategies for developing enforceable AI usage policies
• A framework for moving from reactive security measures to proactive AI governance

Who should attend

This webinar is designed for institutional leaders responsible for technology, compliance, governance, and risk management, including:

• Chief Information Officers (CIOs)
• IT Directors and CISOs
• Chief Compliance Officers
• Provosts and academic administrators
• Faculty leaders and department heads
• General counsel and risk officers

Expert speaker

Dr. Jason Nairn leads Collegis Education’s security practice and serves as a virtual CIO for partner institutions. With more than 20 years of experience in higher education technology, cybersecurity, compliance, and governance, he helps colleges and universities manage risk, strengthen resilience, and navigate the challenges of an increasingly complex digital landscape.

Reserve Your Spot

Prepare your institution for the realities of AI adoption.

Register today to learn how higher education leaders can reduce AI-related risk, strengthen compliance, and establish governance frameworks that support innovation without compromising security.

Complete the form on the top right to reserve your spot. We look forward to seeing you on June 25.

You Can’t Cut Your Way to Growth in Higher Education

During conversations with dozens of institutional leaders at our recent DisruptED summit, it is clear that they are facing unprecedented financial pressure.

Tuition revenue is declining at many institutions. Retention rates are slipping. The demographic pipeline of traditional-age students continues to narrow. Competition is intensifying. And labor costs (often the largest line item on the budget) rise year over year.

When the top line shrinks, the immediate instinct is simple: cut expenses. Balance the budget by reducing overhead, freezing hiring, trimming programs, delaying investments, etc.

Fiscal discipline is necessary. Institutions do need to right-size expenses. But here’s the reality: You can’t cut your way to growth.

The temptation of expense control

Few colleges and universities have endowments large enough or flexible enough to offset sustained enrollment declines. When revenue drops, leaders often turn to the most direct lever: expense. It’s measurable, it can be immediate, and it creates the appearance of control.

Reducing costs can stop the bleeding, but it does not address the structural challenges driving financial strain in the first place. Enrollment headwinds are not temporary, retention pressures are not isolated, and labor costs will continue to increase.

And there is a limit to how much you can cut. There is only so much you can remove before you begin weakening the very capabilities required to compete. At some point, you’re cutting into bone.

The hidden costs of cutting your way to stability

When institutions focus exclusively on expense, they often underinvest in the very capabilities that generate and protect revenue.

There are areas in higher education that are not discretionary — they are strategic.

Enrollment infrastructure

Reducing marketing investment or enrollment operations may create short-term savings. But it weakens the pipeline that fuels future cohorts.

If institutions scale back recruitment strategy, market visibility declines, inquiry flow softens, and conversion rates slip. The downstream impact may not show up immediately, but it will compound.

Enrollment is not optional spending. It is revenue generation.

Retention and student support

Retention protects the revenue institutions have already worked so hard to earn. When student support structures are reduced or there is unnecessary friction in the student lifecycle, stop-out rates increase, students disengage, and tuition dollars disappear.

Improving retention requires intentional investment in data, technology-enabled engagement models, and proactive outreach. Cutting here may balance a line item today while accelerating revenue loss tomorrow.

Data and technology modernization

Many institutions are allocating substantial dollars to maintain outdated infrastructure. Siloed systems, inefficient processes, and disconnected data environments absorb budget without advancing growth.

You cannot compete in today’s environment with yesterday’s infrastructure.

Growth requires more than maintaining legacy systems. Institutions must invest in a modern, connected data ecosystem that brings together enrollment, retention, academic, and financial insights in real time. Without integrated, reliable data, AI initiatives stall before they scale and generate ROI. A unified data foundation is the prerequisite for innovation and sustainable growth.

IT capability and cybersecurity

Technology has become central to institutional resilience. Reducing IT capability may appear efficient, but it often eliminates critical skill sets and increases cybersecurity exposure. In an era of escalating threats, a fragmented or under-resourced IT environment carries significant risk.

Short-term savings achieved at the expense of security and resilience can create long-term consequences far greater than the dollars preserved.

Start with a clear view of where you stand

Before institutions can grow, they must understand where they are. That begins with a clear-eyed assessment of how resources are currently allocated. Leaders need visibility into where investments are going, and whether those investments are advancing institutional priorities or simply sustaining the status quo.

In our work with partners, we conduct IT and institutional health assessments as part of the discovery process. These assessments provide a comprehensive view of technology infrastructure, operational processes, and investment priorities to ensure recommendations align with each institution’s goals and desired outcomes.

Through this exercise, we often see institutions investing significant resources in outdated technologies, duplicative systems, and manual processes that no longer support their strategic direction. In some cases, they are throwing good money into bad infrastructure — continuing to fund tools and workflows that limit agility instead of enabling it.

Without that clarity, cost-cutting becomes reactive and misdirected, trimming visible expenses while inefficient systems continue draining resources behind the scenes. Sustainable growth requires more than reduction. Leaders must know what drives revenue, what protects it, and what erodes it. From there, you can streamline with precision, modernize with purpose, and reinvest where it matters most.

Shifting from stabilization to sustainable growth

Once you understand where you stand, the next step is a deliberate commitment to change.

Cost control is certainly part of the equation, but it is not the full solution. Streamlining inefficiencies and modernizing outdated systems are important steps. They are not, on their own, a growth strategy.

The real shift happens when leaders stop asking, “Where can we cut?” and start asking, “What will move us forward?”

That means:

• Bringing the right programs to market based on demand
• Using data to strengthen enrollment and retention strategy
• Aligning technology with the student experience
• Protecting and expanding revenue engines
• Leveraging automation and integration to scale impact

Growth does not happen by default. It happens when institutions intentionally build the capabilities that drive momentum across the student lifecycle.

Leadership will define what comes next

Committing to change requires decisive leadership.

Higher education is navigating structural shifts, not temporary disruption, and stability will not simply return with time. Leaders must move beyond preserving the status quo and instead shape what comes next for their institutions.

That means challenging long-held assumptions, prioritizing investments that strengthen enrollment and retention, and acting with urgency in an environment defined by constant evolution. There is no final steady state ahead. The institutions that succeed will be those that build agility into their strategy, infrastructure, and culture.

Growth does not happen by chance. It is the result of sustained investment, modern capabilities, and leaders willing to move before circumstances force their hand.

You cannot cut your way to growth. But you can build your way toward it.

Technology expectations in higher education have never been higher. Students expect seamless digital experiences, faculty rely on stable, integrated systems to teach and conduct research, and institutional leaders need real-time data to make informed decisions.

Yet many colleges and universities remain stuck, held back by aging infrastructure, limited budgets, or the belief that maintaining the status quo is safer than change.

From where I sit, that belief is one of the most expensive misconceptions in higher ed today.

IT inaction isn’t neutral. Standing still doesn’t preserve resources; it quietly drains them. Over time, those costs compound in ways that are harder to see, harder to control, and far more disruptive than proactive modernization.

The hidden costs of doing nothing

When institutions delay IT investment, the consequences rarely show up as a single line item. Instead, they surface as inefficiencies spread across budgets, teams, and timelines.

Legacy systems are a prime example. Redundant platforms often require duplicated effort, separate maintenance contracts, and manual reconciliation between systems that should be integrated.

Hardware that’s past its lifecycle can lead to unexpected outages and emergency spending that exceeds planned budgets. Older systems also demand specialized support, which is increasingly difficult and expensive to find as vendors phase out end-of-life technology.

What’s most costly, though, is time.

IT teams spend countless hours keeping outdated systems afloat by troubleshooting avoidable issues, applying workarounds, and responding to preventable failures. That’s time not being spent on strategic initiatives that improve efficiency, student experience, or institutional resilience.

I often describe it this way: Maintaining legacy systems is like pouring money into a leaky boat just to stay afloat, not to move forward.

Security vulnerabilities and reputational risk

When it comes to cybersecurity, the cost of inaction is especially serious.

Legacy systems that lack consistent monitoring pose a heightened security risk. Outdated software, fragmented technology environments, and limited visibility create prime opportunities for cyberattacks — particularly for institutions that handle sensitive student, faculty, and financial data.

Compliance becomes more difficult in these conditions. Meeting FERPA, HIPAA, and other regulatory requirements is far more complex when systems aren’t integrated or consistently managed. Non-compliance doesn’t just carry financial penalties. It can threaten accreditation and erode institutional trust.

The fallout of a breach extends well beyond remediation costs. Reputational damage can deter prospective students, strain donor relationships, and take years to repair.

Simply put, institutions don’t want to make headlines because of a cybersecurity lapse they could have prevented.

Missed opportunities for strategic growth

IT inaction doesn’t just introduce risk. It actively limits growth.

Students move seamlessly across digital platforms in every part of their lives. When institutional systems don’t integrate, the student experience becomes fragmented, support slows down, faculty shoulder unnecessary administrative burdens, and leaders lose the data visibility needed to intervene early or plan strategically.

I’ve seen institutions stuck on legacy SIS infrastructure that prevents modern integrations altogether. The result is manual reporting, delayed insights, and staff hours spent pulling data instead of using it.

Outdated environments also restrict access to emerging technologies like AI, automation, and advanced analytics. These are tools that could drive efficiency, personalize engagement, and support enrollment and retention strategies. Without a scalable IT foundation, even well-intentioned growth initiatives increase cost and complexity instead of reducing them.

IT staff burnout and talent drain

The impact of chronic IT underinvestment is deeply human.

Internal IT teams in under-resourced environments operate almost entirely in reactive mode. They’re constantly firefighting by responding to outages, security alerts, and system failures, all while knowing the underlying risks remain unresolved.

That’s exhausting, and over time, it erodes morale.

Talented IT professionals want to innovate. They want to build, improve, and contribute strategically. When their work is limited to keeping aging systems alive, frustration builds, and burnout follows. Eventually, institutions lose people they can’t easily replace.

Recruitment becomes harder as well. Prospective hires can quickly identify an organization with no clear IT roadmap. They understand what that environment demands, and many choose to look elsewhere.

This is where managed IT support can fundamentally change the equation.

By shifting routine monitoring, maintenance, and after-hours support to a trusted partner, institutions reduce daily stressors on internal teams. Proactive management prevents crises before they escalate. Internal staff regain the capacity to focus on strategy, innovation, and meaningful institutional impact.

Inaction is a choice (an expensive one)

One of the biggest misconceptions I hear from higher ed leaders is that modernizing IT is too expensive, too complex, or too disruptive.

The reality is that institutions are already paying for IT. They’re just paying in less visible and far less controlled ways. They’re paying through staff turnover, downtime, security exposure, and through leadership time spent managing exceptions instead of advancing strategy.

Modern IT investment isn’t about chasing the latest technology. It’s about stabilizing operations, reducing risk, and making costs predictable. It’s a decision about institutional capacity, long-term resilience, and the people who make both possible.

If I had 60 seconds with a higher ed president or CFO, I’d say this: The decision isn’t whether you’re spending on IT. That spend is already happening. The real question is whether you want it to be controlled and strategic, or hidden and reactive.

Moving forward with confidence

Higher education is navigating unprecedented change. Institutions that succeed won’t be the ones that avoid investment. They’ll be the ones that built strong, flexible foundations capable of supporting their mission long-term.

If your institution is feeling the strain of outdated systems or reactive IT, now is the time to act. Collegis partners with colleges and universities to stabilize operations, reduce risk, and build IT environments designed for what’s next through our Managed IT Services for higher education.

Lead technology transformation with confidence, clarity, and control. 

IT isn’t just a cost center. It’s a critical enabler of your institution’s strategic goals. But too often, campus technology operations are under-resourced, fragmented, and reactive. That leaves CFOs in the dark about what’s working, what’s wasted, and where to invest next. 

We built this free guide specifically for higher ed finance leaders who are ready to shift from maintenance mode to a more strategic, future-ready approach. 

Who It’s For: 

• CFOs and finance leaders 

• COOs, CIOs, and enrollment executives involved in tech decision-making 

• Presidents and provosts seeking better visibility into IT performance 

Whether you’re facing outdated systems, overwhelmed teams, or rising IT costs with unclear returns, this guide will give you the insight and structure to lead with impact. 

Submit the form on the top right to get your free copy.

Multi-year collaboration to strengthen cybersecurity, streamline systems, and drive operational innovation across campus.

DENVER, Colo. — [November 11, 2025] — Regis University today announced a new five-year partnership with Collegis Education, a nationally recognized provider of higher education technology and data solutions, to modernize and strengthen the university’s IT infrastructure. The collaboration marks a major step in Regis’ ongoing digital transformation strategy, designed to enhance cybersecurity, improve data integration, and deliver more efficient, 24/7 technology services across campus.

In the fall of 2023, Regis launched a comprehensive assessment of its IT infrastructure. The results made clear that gaps in existing systems limited the university’s ability to serve students, faculty, and staff efficiently. Addressing these challenges required reimagining how technology services are delivered to ensure systems are reliable, responsive, and aligned with the needs of a modern learning environment.

“Technology is foundational to how we teach, learn, and work, and this partnership represents a major investment in Regis University’s future,” said Stephanie Morris, Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Regis University. “Partnering with Collegis allows us to modernize our IT operations, strengthen security, and provide a more unified and responsive experience for our community, all while maintaining our commitment to operational excellence and fiscal responsibility.”

Regis selected Collegis through a competitive RFP process, following staff recommendations based on prior positive experiences with the company at other institutions. Throughout the evaluation, Collegis distinguished itself by demonstrating a deep understanding of universities’ operational complexities and by recognizing the central role technology plays in supporting teaching, learning, and student success. 

As part of the partnership, Collegis will help Regis integrate core systems, including Colleague, Salesforce, and Workday, to create a more seamless experience for students, faculty, and staff.  This will allow Regis to improve efficiencies, access diverse levels of expertise, provide 24/7 service availability, and improve system integrations. 

The collaboration will provide Regis with access to a broad range of higher education IT expertise and scalable resources. Collegis’ team will collaborate closely with Regis leadership to deliver high-performing systems, improved uptime and reliability, and integrated data systems that strengthen university operations and inform decision-making.

“We are proud to partner with Regis University, an institution with a deep commitment to innovation and service,” said Kim Fahey, CEO of Collegis Education. “Our role is to help Regis leverage technology to empower its mission to support a secure, connected, and efficient digital ecosystem that enhances the student experience and strengthens institutional resilience.”

Under the agreement, Collegis will assume management of day-to-day IT infrastructure operations, while Regis will continue to oversee technology strategy and governance. Faculty, staff, and students will continue to access support through familiar channels—including the online self-service portal and ITS help desk—with the added benefit of 24/7 availability and expanded system monitoring.

The transition will take place over the coming year, with listening sessions and open forums held throughout the process to ensure transparency, collaboration, and feedback from the Regis community.

“Partnership success is realized when operational excellence, trust, and shared purpose combine to deliver reliable technology services; improved faculty, staff, and student experiences; and measurable value to the university’s mission,” said Morris. “With Collegis as a strategic partner, we will be able to evolve to meet changing institutional needs and empower our faculty to teach, our students to learn, and our community to thrive.”

About Regis University

Established in 1877, Regis University is a premier, globally engaged institution of higher learning in the Jesuit tradition that prepares leaders to live productive lives of faith, meaning and service. Regis University, one of 27 Jesuit universities in the nation, has two campus locations in the Denver metro area and extensive online program offerings with more than 6,000 enrolled students. It is a federally designated Hispanic-Serving Institution. For more information, visit www.regis.edu.

About Collegis Education

As a mission-oriented, tech-enabled services provider, Collegis Education partners with higher education institutions to help align operations to drive transformative impact across the entire student lifecycle. With over 25 years as an industry pioneer, Collegis has proven how to leverage data, technology, and talent to optimize institutions’ business processes that enhance the student experience. With strategic expertise that rivals the leading consultancies, a full suite of proven service lines —including marketing, enrollment, retention, IT —and its world-class Connected Core® data platform, Collegis helps its partners drive impact and generate revenue, growth, and innovation. Learn more at CollegisEducation.com or via LinkedIn.

Media Contacts:

Collegis Education

Alyssa Miller

alyssa@ammediaworks.com

973-615-1292

Regis University

Sheryl Tirol

stirol@regis.edu

Last month, a few of our Collegis leaders attended the Google Public Sector Leaders Connect summit in Chicago. This event brought together technology, education, and government leaders to address one major question: How can public institutions unlock the true value of AI?

Institutions are grappling with a fast-changing AI landscape

The summit served up plenty of insight, data, and dialogue about the promises and pitfalls of artificial intelligence in higher ed. One stat that hit home: 80% of students think universities are falling short when it comes to integrating AI.

That’s not just a tech gap, it’s a relevance gap. Today’s students are living in an AI-powered world, and if institutions can’t keep pace, they risk losing credibility and connection.

They are also failing to prepare students for a new job market, where AI is “attacking” entry-level jobs that their graduates would previously fill. With many entry-level jobs being fulfilled by AI, what are schools doing to help their graduates get the skills they need to thrive in this new world?

Fragmented priorities are holding higher ed back

As we listened to leaders at the summit and reflected on our partner conversations, it became clear that the challenges institutions face go beyond AI adoption.

Other concerns surfaced as well:

• 71% of institutions say their top priority is attracting and retaining students.
• 56% are worried about data security threats like phishing, ransomware, and breaches.
• 42% cite operational pressures as a major barrier, from business model constraints to process inefficiencies.

On their own, these numbers signal urgency. But together, they reveal something deeper:

Institutions aren’t just overwhelmed by change, they’re unsure where to focus and where to invest.

Competing priorities and limited resources make it hard to know what matters most. These three statistics may look unrelated, but they are all very much related and impact each other. Operational pressure can heighten data security risks, which can trigger breaches that erode student trust and enrollment. Those same pressures often stem from — and lead to — inefficient processes that hurt the student experience and, ultimately, retention.

Throughout the day, multiple speakers kept reinforcing the importance of “prioritizing for impact.” Because while AI offers enormous potential, the technology itself won’t drive transformation — leadership will.

It’s not about adopting more tech — it’s about focusing on impact

Now this struck a chord with me, especially given how we approach partner onboarding at Collegis. Even during early conversations with potential partners, our first question is always the same: “What are you trying to impact?”

It’s a simple question, but the answers we hear are very telling, and can drastically vary depending on who at the institution is answering. What I like about this question is that it helps focus the conversation on a desired end result, providing an immediate opportunity to pressure test strategies, tactics, and competing priorities.

Is this getting you closer to, or further away from, your desired impact? If the latter, perhaps it’s time to consider reallocating resources and budget to what gets you toward the finish line faster.

How to prioritize for impact in higher ed

Take the AI example. Instead of asking, “What AI tools should we adopt?” instead ask, “Where can AI meaningfully move the needle for our institution AND our students?” That shift from solution-first to strategy-first is everything.

Here are a few guideposts we recommend:

1. Start with your outcomes. Whether it’s student success, operational efficiency, or enrollment growth, define what success looks like before introducing any new technology.
2. Connect C-suite ambition with frontline reality. Consider forgoing a top-down approach that prioritizes selling to leadership. To enable real change, your strategies must reflect on-the-ground needs. Build from the bottom up and bring the insight and intel back to your cabinet leaders to help inform prioritization conversations.
3. Break down the silos. So many institutions are decentralized and highly matrixed, which means that critical data, digital infrastructure, and internal departments are often disconnected. Aligning them is essential to enable AI to operate at scale. Consider cloud platforms like Connected Core®, which extract, clean, and connect data across systems, applications, and third-party tools. This enables actionable institutional intelligence across the student lifecycle.
4. Build AI literacy, institution-wide. Google shared that only 14% of campuses have adopted AI literacy as a learning outcome. That’s a missed opportunity to empower both staff and students to engage with AI responsibly and effectively.
5. Don’t go it alone. With 62% of institutions lacking the internal expertise to fully leverage AI, choosing the right partner matters. Not someone just trying to sell you tech, but to help you translate it into impact. This is the talent component of Collegis Education’s data, tech, and talent approach. It does you no good to own a plane if you don’t have a pilot, crew, and maintenance team. When you align your data, tech, and talent, you’ve enabled impact, and sustainable impact at that.

The Google event confirmed what we see every day: Higher ed has a prioritization problem. Leaders have been sold more tech tools than they can use; what they truly need is help implementing them for impact.

A smarter path forward for institutional leaders

Institutional leaders know their schools better than anyone and have a clear vision of where they need to go to thrive.  Building a strategic plan focused on the areas that will drive the greatest impact to that vision is the next critical step.  A great way to start is by finding a partner who understands that progress isn’t about doing more, it’s about doing what matters.

Prioritize for impact. We’ll help you make it happen.

Technology can be one of the most powerful tools an institution has to advance its mission. But without clear, strategic guidance, that same technology can quickly become a source of frustration, inefficiency, and risk. That’s where IT governance comes in.

Today’s colleges and universities are navigating rising cybersecurity threats, tighter budgets, and an expanding ecosystem of platforms and tools. In this environment, IT governance isn’t just an operational necessity — it’s a strategic imperative.

In this article, I’ll define what higher ed IT governance is, why it matters more than ever, and how institutions can build a framework that aligns technology investments with institutional priorities.

What is IT governance in higher ed?

Put simply, IT governance is the structure that ensures every technology investment and decision supports the institution’s goals and strategies. While IT management focuses on maintaining day-to-day systems — like patching servers or updating networks — IT governance answers a different set of questions, such as:

• Which projects should we prioritize?
• How do we allocate limited resources for the greatest impact?
• Who needs to be involved in shaping these decisions?

A thoughtful approach to IT governance isn’t just a collection of policies. It’s an intentional structure that fosters transparency, collaboration, and accountability across the entire institution.

When done well, governance clarifies how decisions are made, who is responsible for making them, and what criteria determine success. This clarity reduces confusion, builds trust, and ensures that technology investments consistently support the institution’s mission and priorities.

An effective governance framework typically includes:

• Decision-making structures such as IT governance committees with representation across academic and administrative areas
• Policy development that guides how technology projects are evaluated and approved
• Risk management and compliance oversight to keep pace with evolving regulations and security requirements

When institutions embrace governance as a shared responsibility, technology becomes a strategic asset rather than a departmental concern.

Why higher ed IT governance matters more than ever

The complexity of higher ed technology ecosystems has grown exponentially. Many institutions now rely on cloud platforms, ERP and student information systems, learning management systems, and emerging tools like AI.

Without governance, it’s easy for tech investments to become siloed or redundant — especially when departments act independently. This fragmentation can lead to:

• Financial waste due to functional redundancy
• No clear system of record/unclear data access policies
• Missed opportunities for collaboration and efficiency

External pressures are also intensifying. Regulatory requirements such as FERPA and GLBA have expanded. Accrediting bodies increasingly expect transparent, documented technology processes. And stakeholders — from faculty to students — demand seamless, secure digital experiences.

In an era of constrained budgets, institutions can’t afford to treat IT governance as an afterthought.

The risks of poor or nonexistent IT governance

When governance isn’t in place, institutions face serious consequences that extend far beyond the IT department. Gaps in oversight and alignment can ripple across every facet of the organization, undermining financial stability, operational efficiency, and stakeholder confidence. Over time, these issues can erode the very foundation of an institution’s mission and reputation.

Some of the most common (and costly) problems include:

• Financial inefficiency and wasted resources: With shrinking enrollments and limited funding, institutions can’t afford investments that fail to deliver measurable value or duplicate existing capabilities.
• Missed opportunities to maximize impact: When IT resources are spread thin across too many projects, even high-priority initiatives can stall or underperform.
• Increased security vulnerabilities: Technology risks are growing faster than most budgets. Without clear governance to prioritize spending on solutions that mitigate the most critical threats, institutions are more exposed to breaches and compliance failures.
• Resistance to change: If end users feel excluded from decisions, adoption suffers—and so does return on investment.
• Reputational damage: Failed implementations and security incidents can erode trust with students, staff, and stakeholders.
• Inability to scale or innovate effectively: Disconnected systems and uncoordinated efforts make it harder to keep pace with evolving needs.

We’ve seen this firsthand, where IT leadership at institutions make major platform decisions without involving departmental leaders. The result was widespread resistance and a perception that technology was imposed rather than collaborative. When people don’t have a seat at the table, they’re far less likely to champion change.

“When people don’t have a seat at the table, they’re far less likely to champion change.”

What effective higher ed IT governance looks like

Good governance is intentional, inclusive, and transparent. It doesn’t happen by accident — it requires clear structures and a shared commitment to align technology decisions with institutional goals. When these elements come together, colleges and universities create an environment where technology can thrive as a strategic asset rather than a siloed expense.

To build this kind of foundation, governance should include:

• Cross-functional committees: Cabinet members typically designate representatives from key areas (e.g., academic affairs, enrollment, finance) to ensure diverse perspectives.
• Clear processes: Policies that define how projects are proposed, prioritized, and evaluated.
• Defined success metrics: Criteria for measuring whether investments deliver the intended impact.
• Regular reviews: Governance frameworks should be revisited at least annually to keep pace with evolving needs and regulations.

Moving forward: IT governance as a strategic imperative

IT governance in higher ed isn’t just about compliance or risk avoidance. Done well, it empowers colleges and universities to:

• Use technology as a force multiplier
• Align financial and technology resource investments with strategic goals
• Build a culture of collaboration and shared accountability

As institutions navigate emerging priorities — from AI policies to hybrid learning environments — governance will only grow more critical. If you haven’t assessed your governance framework recently, now is the time.

Ready to strengthen your IT governance?

At Collegis, we help institutions develop and operationalize IT governance models that balance innovation with accountability. Our team brings decades of expertise with deep experience aligning technology strategy with institutional vision.

If you’re ready to move beyond reactive technology decisions and build a governance model that drives lasting success, let’s connect!

Let’s cut to it: Higher ed is sprinting toward the AI revolution with its shoelaces untied.

Presidents are in boardrooms making bold declarations. Provosts are throwing out buzzwords like “machine learning” and “predictive modeling.” Enrollment and marketing teams are eager to automate personalization, deploy chatbots, and rewrite campaigns using tools like ChatGPT.

The energy is real. The urgency is understandable. But there’s an uncomfortable truth institutions need to face: You’re not ready.

Not because you’re not visionary. Not because your teams aren’t capable. But because your data is a disaster.

AI is not an easy button

Somewhere along the way, higher ed started treating AI like a miracle shortcut — a shiny object that could revolutionize enrollment, retention, and student services overnight.

But AI isn’t a magic wand. It’s more like a magnifying glass, exposing what’s underneath.

If your systems are fragmented, your records are outdated, and your departments are still hoarding spreadsheets like it’s 1999, AI will only scale the chaos. It won’t save you – it’ll just amplify your problems.

When AI goes sideways

Take the California State University system. They announced their ambition to become the nation’s first AI-powered public university system. But after the headlines faded, faculty across the system were left with more questions than answers. Where was the strategy? Who was in charge? What’s the plan?

The disconnect between vision and infrastructure was glaring.

Elsewhere, institutions have already bolted AI tools onto outdated systems, without first doing the foundational work. The result? Predictive models that misidentify which students are at risk. Dashboards that contradict themselves. Chatbots that confuse students more than they support them.

This isn’t an AI failure. It’s a data hygiene failure.

You don’t need hype — You need hygiene

Before your institution invests another dollar in AI, ask these real questions:

• Do we trust the accuracy of our enrollment, academic, and financial data?
• Are we still manually wrangling CSVs each month just to build reports?
• Do our systems speak the same language, or are they siloed and outdated?
• Is our data governance robust enough to ensure privacy, security, and usefulness?
• Have we invested in the unglamorous but essential work (e.g., integration pipelines, metadata management, and cross-functional alignment)?

If the answer is “not yet,” then congratulations — you’ve found your starting point. That’s your AI strategy.

Because institutions that are succeeding with AI, like Ivy Tech Community College, didn’t chase the trend. They built the infrastructure. They did the work. They cleaned up first.

What true AI readiness looks like (a not-so-subtle sales pitch)

Let’s be honest: there’s no shortage of vendors selling the AI dream right now. Slick demos, lofty promises, flashy outcomes. But most of them are missing the part that actually matters — a real, proven plan to get from vision to execution.

This is where Collegis is different. We don’t just sell transformation. We deliver it. Our approach is grounded in decades of experience, built for higher ed, and designed to scale.

Here’s how we help institutions clean up the mess and build a foundation that makes AI actually work:

Connected Core®: Your data’s new best friend

Our proprietary Connected Core solution connects systems, eliminates silos, and creates a single source of truth. It’s the backbone of innovation — powering everything from recruitment to reporting with real-time, reliable data.

Strategy + AI alignment: Tech that knows where it’s going

We don’t just implement tools. We align technology to your mission, operational goals, and student success strategy. And we help you implement AI ethically, with governance frameworks that prioritize transparency and accountability.

Analytics that drive action

We transform raw data into real insights. From integration and warehousing to dashboards and predictive models, we help institutions interpret what’s really happening — and act on it with confidence.

Smarter resource utilization

We help you reimagine how your institution operates. By identifying inefficiencies and eliminating redundancies, we create more agile, collaborative workflows that maximize impact across departments.

Boosted conversion and retention

Our solutions enable personalized student engagement, supporting the full lifecycle from inquiry to graduation. That means better conversion rates, stronger persistence, and improved outcomes.

AI wins when the infrastructure works

Clean data isn’t a project — it’s a prerequisite. It’s the thing that makes AI more than a buzzword. More than a dashboard. It’s what turns hype into help.

And when you get it right, the impact is transformational.

“The level of data mastery and internal talent at Collegis is some of the best-in-class we’ve seen in the EdTech market. When you pair that with Google Cloud’s cutting-edge AI innovation and application development, you get a partnership that can enable transformation not only at the institutional level but within the higher education category at large.”

— Brad Hoffman, Director, State & Local Government and Higher Education, Google

There are no shortcuts to smart AI

AI can only be as effective as the foundation it’s built on. Until your systems are aligned and your data is trustworthy, you’re not ready to scale innovation.

If you want AI to work for your institution — really work — it starts with getting your data house in order. Let’s build something that lasts. Something that works. Something that’s ready.

Curious what that looks like? Let’s talk. We’ll help you map out a real, achievable foundation for AI in higher ed.

You stuck with me to the end? I like you already! Let’s keep the momentum going. If your wheels are turning and you’re wondering where to start, our Napkin Sketch session might be the perfect next step. It’s a fast, collaborative way to map out your biggest data and tech challenges—no pressure, no sales pitch, just a conversation. Check it out!

In higher education, it’s easy to feel stuck.

You know something isn’t working — maybe enrollment processes are clunky, or student support services feel disconnected. You’ve tried new tools, updated systems, created initiatives to create change, and added staff, but the problem persists.  It’s like there’s a giant boulder in your way, and no matter how hard you push, it doesn’t budge.

It turns out, you don’t need a bulldozer – just a napkin sketch to start building momentum to move the boulder standing in the way.

It’s a surprisingly simple concept, using visual design thinking exercises to help colleges and universities get unstuck. Not with more tech, or a fancy AI solution, but with more clarity to understand how things work today to create a framework for change tomorrow.

Because real innovation in higher education doesn’t come from software or a technology — it starts with understanding the systems and the processes you already have so you can visualize what they could be.

What is a napkin sketch?

The napkin sketch is exactly what it sounds like: a back-of-the-napkin-style drawing that quickly maps out how a particular process actually works in your institution so it can be reimagined.

It’s low-tech, but high-impact.

Think of it as building a gameboard for players to play. Like a Monopoly board, everyone knows the players, the rules, and the steps. It makes the choices that need to be made for each player’s turn clear.  When these choices are laid out visually, it becomes much easier to pinpoint where the real opportunities (and challenges) are.

What does the napkin sketch exercise entail?

I usually start these sessions by asking one simple questions with a key follow-up

• What’s the opportunity for ‘impact’? (What are you trying to accomplish?)
• What’s preventing progress?

Then we get to work. Together, we sketch out the entire process: from first interaction to the final outcome. We account for every step, system, and stakeholder that’s involved. We highlight the costs, the tools and technology handoffs, potential delays, and where things might be falling through the cracks.

We typically conduct the sketch in a virtual drawing space, where we can collaborate in real time to map out the full process. It’s not about polished visuals — it’s about building a shared understanding of how things operate today.

And in about 60-90 minutes, we always have at least one person in the group say out loud “I didn’t realize that’s how it actually works.” And another will inevitably ask “You’re going to send us this napkin sketch, right? I want to print it out.”

What can the napkin sketch reveal?

In our experience working with hundreds of institutions of all shapes and sizes, we’ve found that many face surprisingly similar challenges. This exercise consistently shines a light on hidden opportunities, creating a blueprint for change.

Common things we uncover include:

• Manual, repetitive tasks that could be automated or streamlined
• Workarounds that have become permanent fixtures without anyone questioning them
• Disconnects between departments, systems, or technologies
• Operational silos that prevent teams from seeing the full picture or collaborating effectively
• Missed opportunities to better track, analyze, or act on data
• Unclear ownership of key steps in the process

In short, the napkin sketch helps institutions see what’s really going on — and what needs to change to move forward.

Why does it work?

Higher ed innovation often stalls because teams are too close to the problem or too deep in their own silo to see the bigger picture. The napkin sketch breaks through that by creating a space for everyone involved to step back and collaborate.

Here’s why it’s effective:

• It’s fast — most sessions take an hour or two.
• It’s visual — helping teams align quickly and clearly.
• It’s collaborative — bringing together voices from across departments.
• It’s actionable — revealing next steps that are grounded in reality.

Most importantly, it shifts the focus away from jumping to solutions and toward understanding the system. Once you understand the system, smart solutions become much more obvious — and effective.

Real examples of the napkin sketch in action

Whether it’s enrollment workflows, transcript processing, student communications, or data handoffs between systems or teams, the napkin sketch exercise can help untangle a wide variety of operational challenges. No two institutions are exactly alike, but many face similar complexities — manual processes, siloed teams, and unclear ownership that stall progress.

Here are a few discoveries we uncovered in recent napkin sketch sessions I’ve led:

• One institution realized how many steps were involved in processing transcripts — with staff toggling between platforms, uploading the same file in multiple places, and doing manual comparisons. Once the process was mapped, we explored how AI could handle the course match evaluations — saving hours of staff time each week.

• Another team sketched out their enrollment outreach process and discovered they were sending multiple conflicting messages to students at the same time. The sketch helped them realign their communications and reduce student confusion.
• A third school wanted to integrate a new tool into their tech stack, but the sketch revealed that the underlying workflow was broken — and that no tool would help until the foundational process was improved.

In each case, the aha moment didn’t come from buying something new — it came from clearly seeing what was already happening so it could be improved upon.

What could your napkin sketch uncover?

If you’re wrestling with outdated processes, disconnected systems, or unclear handoffs — you’re not alone. Many institutions are trying to drive higher ed innovation with limited resources and overwhelming complexity.

But you don’t need to have all the answers right now. You just need a clearer view of the problem so you can develop a thoughtful solution.

That’s what the napkin sketch offers: a simple, collaborative way to map your reality, uncover opportunity, and take a smarter next step forward.

Let’s sketch it out — and see what we find!

AI is the latest buzzword in higher ed, but without a clear strategy and solid data, institutions risk overinvesting in additional products, platforms, and applications they can’t fully support or operationalize. Instead, take a step back and ask, “What’s the impact I want to achieve, and how can AI fit or support my broader goals?”

In this webinar, AI Jumpstart Kit: How to Build Toward IMPACT with AI in Higher Ed, Collegis Education’s AVP of Analytics & Technology Solutions, Dan Antonson, and Senior Director of Strategy and Innovation, Wes Catlett-Miller, will guide attendees through an interactive discussion about how to approach key use cases with AI in higher education. We’ll whiteboard out what an AI-enabled institution can look like, how it all works, and live demo actual AI initiatives Collegis has deployed for its partners.

No clunky PowerPoint slides. Just a clear path for approaching AI enablement.

What you’ll walk away with:

• A thorough understanding of how AI fits into the broader ecosystem (add-ons vs. platform)
• A model for making decisions on when to build and when to buy
• A clear understanding of the role tech and data play in AI enablement

Who should attend:

• Presidents + Provosts
• CFOs + COOs + CMOs
• Enrollment + Marketing leaders