Connecting and Collaborating to Support Student Success: A Shared Equity Leadership Approach

Friday, January 23, 2026

10:45 AM - 11:45 AM East Coast USA Time

Location: Georgetown University - Level M1

Primary Presenter(s)

EH

Elizabeth Holcombe

Senior Research Associate
University of Southern California
Atlanta, Georgia, United States

Co-Presenter(s)

MC

Milena Cuellar (she/her/hers)

Professor and Carnegie National Faculty; Co-Director, Shared Equity Leadership Project
LaGuardia Community College, City University of New York (CUNY)
Long Island City, New York, United States
Reem Jaafar (she/her/hers)

Dean for Institutional Effectiveness
Queensborough Community College- CUNY
Brooklyn, New York, United States
MK

Marlene Kowalski-Braun

Associate Vice President and Deputy Chief Inclusion and Equity Officer
Grand Valley State University, United States
Randy Williams

Vice President for Inclusive Excellence and Associate Professor of Education
Elon University, United States

This panel discussion will share the experiences of several campuses that have been implementing the Shared Equity Leadership (SEL) model, which embeds responsibility for equity work across campus rather than siloing it within a single leader or office. SEL represents a form of institutional transformation to advance student success that can be aligned or adapted to an institution’s unique mission and context. The session will begin with an overview of the SEL model and describe the current project supporting six campuses that have been implementing SEL. Participants will then hear directly from leaders from four of these campuses about their experiences with implementation. They will share some of the lessons they have learned and challenges they have faced, especially as they navigate increasingly restrictive and hostile environments around diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) work in higher education.