Our Initiatives
The Western Academic Leadership Forum (Forum) has numerous current initiatives in which its academic leaders actively collaborate, so as to coalesce ideas and best practices that serve all Forum members. These initiatives add value and engagement opportunities for Forum members, in addition to regular Forum meetings and frequent opportunities for dialogue. These initiatives are outlined below.
Director, Academic Leadership Initiatives
303.541.0221 sleibrandt@wiche.edu
Sarah Leibrandt, Ph.D., is the director of academic leadership initiatives for Interstate Passport at the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education and has over 15 years of experience working in secondary and postsecondary education. Since joining WICHE in 2013, Leibrandt has led several initiatives including WICHE’s Recognizing Learning in the 21st Century, a large-scale research study and landscape analysis of the scaling of prior learning assessment policies and practices. Sarah has also helped state agencies share education and workforce data with each other through the Multistate Longitudinal Data Exchange as a way to provide better information to students and their families while also improving education, workforce, and economic development policy. Prior to joining WICHE, Leibrandt worked for the Colorado Department of Education and Red Rocks Community College. Leibrandt earned a B.A. in Spanish from Wellesley College and a Ph.D. in Education Policy from the University of Colorado Boulder.