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2026 Forum Annual Meeting
Schedule-at-a-Glance

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Please note that this schedule is subject to change.

Wednesday, April 1

Time Session
11:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. Registration Open
12:00 – 1:30 p.m. Lunch—2025 Academy Cohort and Executive Committee (2025 Academy Cohort and Executive Committees Only)
1:30 – 3:30 p.m. Concurrently:
5:00 p.m. – 6:30 p.m. Welcome Reception at Hotel Chaco

Thursday, April 24

Time Session
7:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. Registration Open
7:30 a.m. – 8:30 a.m. Breakfast
8:30 a.m. – 9:00 a.m. Welcome and Meeting Overview
9:00 a.m. – 10:00 a.m. Keynote Address
10:00 a.m. – 10:15 a.m. Break
10:15 a.m. – 11:05 a.m. Concurrent Sessions

  • Cut and Reappropriate: Strategic Reinvestment in the Utah System of Higher Education
  • WeR1: How to Develop a Strategic, Multi-Faceted, and Adaptive Faculty Research Success Program through Effective Organizational Partnerships
11:05 a.m. – 11:20 a.m. Break
11:20 a.m. – 12:10 p.m. Concurrent Sessions

  • Implementing Strategic Organizational Change to Enhance Faculty Success
  • Transforming Graduate Education: Collaborative Solutions to the Complexities of Student Success
12:15 p.m. – 1:30 p.m. Networking Lunch
1:30 p.m. – 2:20 p.m. General Session: The Enrollment Ambition Gap: How Institutional Targets Compare to Demographic Projections for WICHE States
2:20 p.m. – 2:35 p.m. Break
2:35 p.m. – 3:25 p.m. Concurrent Sessions

  • Micro-pathways: A model to drive statewide transformation efforts in Montana
  • Intentionally Supporting Students’ Learning, Persistence, and Career Readiness
3:25 p.m. – 3:40 p.m. Break
3:40 p.m. – 4:30 p.m. Concurrent Sessions

  • Maximizing Institutional Capacity Through Shared Services: A Collaborative Approach
  • Competitive Enrollment Strategies and Student-Centered Innovation at the University of New Mexico
4:45 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. Graduation and Awards Reception with support from the Mellon Foundation

  • Bernice Joseph Award Presentation
  • Colleague’s Choice Award Presentation
  • WICHE Institute for Leaders in the Humanities, Graduation of the 2025 Cohort
  • Western Academic Leadership Academy, Graduation of the 2025 Cohort
Dinner on your own

Friday, April 17

Time Session
7:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. Registration Open
8:00 a.m. – 9:00 a.m. Breakfast
9:00 a.m. – 9:30 a.m. Membership Meeting
9:30 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. Closing Plenary

Using Alternative Futures Scenario Building to Envision the Futures of Higher Education
10:30 a.m. – 10:45 a.m. Wrap Up & Adjournment
10:45 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. Break
11:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. Optional Community Visit: University of New Mexico Campus Tour