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DAY 1
MARCH 3RD - TUESDAY
KEYNOTE SPEAKER
3/3/26 -- 10:00 AM CENTRAL TIME
Supporting Today’s Students through Proactive, Data-Informed Innovations
PRESENTATION OVERVIEW:
For more than a decade, Georgia State University has been at the leading edge of demographic shifts in the southeast. While doubling the numbers of non-white and low-income students it enrolls, the university has simultaneously committed to the use of data to inform systematic institutional change, raising its graduation rates by 70%. Through a discussion of innovations ranging from AI-enhanced chatbots and predictive analytics to meta-majors and micro grants, the keynote will cover lessons learned from Georgia State’s transformation and outline several concrete and scalable steps that campuses can take to improve outcomes for students while increasing revenues. It then will share results from the scaling of these approaches to more than 170 postsecondary institutions across the U.S. through the work of the National Institute for Student success.
SPEAKER BIOGRAPHY:
Named one of the World’s 50 Greatest Leaders by Fortune magazine. Timothy Renick is the founding Executive Director of the National Institute for Student Success and Professor at Georgia State University. Between 2008-2020, he directed the student success efforts of the university, overseeing a 70% improvement in graduation rates and the elimination of all equity gaps based on students race, ethnicity, or income level. Dr. Renick has testified on strategies for helping university students succeed before the both the U.S. Senate and House, and he has twice been invited to speak at the White House. His work has been covered by the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, Time, and CNN and cited by former President Barack Obama. Dr. Renick was named one of the Most Innovative People in Higher Education by Washington Monthly, was the recipient of the Award for National Leadership in Student Success Innovation, and was awarded the prestigious McGraw Prize in Higher Education for the wide-ranging impact of his data-based approaches on the field of student success. The U.S. Department of Education recognized Renick’s National Institute for Student Success with its Trailblazer Award, and his work was the subject of Andrew Gumbel’s book Won’t Lose This Dream. He has been principal investigator for more than $80 million in grants focused on promoting better and more equitable outcomes for college students. A summa cum laude graduate of Dartmouth College, Dr. Renick holds his M.A. and Ph.D. in Religion from Princeton University.
Estimated time: Speech 60 Minutes --- Question and Answers 15-20 Minutes
NOTE: If you have technical difficulties, please call 334-670-3691 or email shannon@alabamatransfers.com.
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DISCUSSION PANEL
3/3/26 -- 1:00 PM CENTRAL TIME
The Future of Transfer Student Success in Alabama: The EdVisorly and Alabama Transfers Pilot Program in Action
PANEL DISCUSSION OVERVIEW:
In 2025, Alabama Transfers launched a bold, collaborative effort to modernize the transfer experience for community college students within the State of Alabama. This panel session will share early insights and lessons from the first phase of the EdVisorly & Alabama Transfers Pilot Program, a groundbreaking multi-year initiative led jointly by EdVisorly and Alabama Transfers. With participation from Troy University, Enterprise State Community College, Lurleen B. Wallace Community College, and Wallace Community College–Dothan, the pilot is designed to simplify and redesign transfer and reverse transfer pathways statewide.
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Panelists will discuss how the initiative is transforming transfer operations and empowering students through EdVisorly’s AI-powered platform. The session will highlight EddyNavigate™, a core tool driving this work, which is a a student-facing planning interface that supports guided transfer pathways.
Speakers will share implementation experiences from both two-year and four-year perspectives, offering practical insight into how the pilot is already addressing long-standing challenges such as siloed credit systems, inconsistent advising, and unclear transfer pathways. The discussion will also explore broader implications for statewide policy, technology-enabled student support, and data-informed enrollment strategies. The session will conclude with a look ahead to future expansion, including plans to scale the initiative to all Alabama community colleges and opportunities for additional institutions to participate.
ABOUT THE PANELISTS:
Brandi Stacey serves as the Director of Partnership Success at EdVisorly, where she collaborates with two- and four-year institutions nationwide to design and implement strategies that advance transfer student success and enrollment outcomes. Most recently, she served as Associate Director of Transfer and In-State Recruitment at The University of Alabama, where she expanded transfer enrollment and led initiatives to better serve transfer and adult learners. Previously at UA, she spearheaded statewide efforts, including the rebranding and enhancement of Alabama Transfers and the launch of the Bama Link tuition grant partnership with UA Online. As a former first-generation community college transfer student and three-time UA alumna, she has dedicated her career to uplifting transfer student success.
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Keith Sessions is the Executive Director of Alabama Transfers, the statewide transfer and articulation support program powered by the Alabama Articulation and General Studies Committee (AGSC). In this role, he leads efforts to streamline and improve the transfer of college credits between two- and four-year public institutions across the state, helping students save time and money on their educational pathways. He has decades of experience in higher education and has been a key figure in Alabama’s transfer system for many years.
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Shannon Nichols is the Assistant Director and IT Manager for Alabama Transfers, the statewide transfer and articulation support program powered by the Alabama Articulation and General Studies Committee (AGSC). In this role, he supports the administration and technology systems that underpin student transfer services and works closely with the Executive Director to manage Alabama Transfers’ database, website, and information systems. Shannon has devoted over 30 years to the Alabama Transfers program and higher education in Alabama, bringing long-standing experience in transfer policy, technology management, and statewide coordination to his work.
Estimated time: Panel Discussion 60 Minutes --- Question and Answers 15-20 Minutes
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NOTE: If you have technical difficulties, please call 334-670-3691 or email shannon@alabamatransfers.com.​
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Dr. Timothy Thornton
Associate Professor of Career and Technical Education
Athens State University
Dr. Letitia Bergantz
Associate Professor of Instructional Design
Athens State University
SPECIAL PRESENTATION
3/3/26 -- 3:00 PM CENTRAL TIME
ActiveFlex - Student Centered Instructional Model
PRESENTATION OVERVIEW:
ActiveFlex is a student-centered instructional model designed to elevate the online learning experience. It expands the "HyFlex" concept of allowing students to attend class in-person, asynchronously, or synchronously. ActiveFlex goes a step further by prioritizing high-level, active engagement, ensuring every learner participates in the same rigorous, hands-on activities.
At Athens State University, ActiveFlex is a specialized instructional model designed specifically to support our unique student body, which consists entirely of transfer students (upper-division) and adult learners. The ActiveFlex model was designed to address many issues associated with the transfer process, including commuting, work-life balance, and credit loss. During this session, we will examine each issue and provide specific examples of how ActiveFlex can be implemented to assist with the transfer process.
ABOUT THE SPEAKER(S):
Timothy Thornton serves as an Associate Professor of Career and Technical Education at Athens State University. His research focuses on the learning needs of nontraditional students, ensuring they have the tools and support needed for success.
Letitia Bergantz began designing courses through an online grant in 2000 while teaching in Kansas. Through experimentation with various models, she has developed her skills as an Associate Professor of Instructional Design at Athens State University.​ She has worked in both education and industry and has created courses for FEMA, FDA, and FAA. Her latest project was through an NSF grant, developing microlearning lessons. Her interest includes instructional design and technologies, maximizing student engagement, and creating flexible learning environments. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with family, traveling, and recently -pickleball.
Estimated time: Presentation 60 Minutes --- Question and Answers 15-20 Minutes​​​​
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NOTE: If you have technical difficulties, please call 334-670-3691 or email shannon@alabamatransfers.com.
DAY 2
MARCH 4TH - WEDNESDAY
Dr. Jason E. Lane
Special Advisor to the University of Illinois System President
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Speaker Introduction by Dr. Tonjanita Johnson (The University of Alabama System Office)
KEYNOTE SPEAKER
3/4/26 -- 10:00 AM CENTRAL TIME
Systemness Is a Leadership Choice: What It Takes to Make Transfer Work at Scale
PRESENTATION OVERVIEW:
Meaningful transfer reform requires more than better policies or technical fixes—it requires a fundamental shift in leadership mindset. Framed around the conference themes of Innovate, Collaborate, and Celebrate, the presentation challenges higher education leaders to rethink how they design and lead student success initiatives. In particular, transfer is positioned not as an operational problem to be managed, but as a strategic opportunity to demonstrate what systemness looks like when leaders put student success first.
To innovate for transfer success, leaders must move beyond incremental adjustments and legacy assumptions about institutional autonomy, ownership of students, and academic control. The presentation highlights how systemness emerges when leaders are willing to redesign rules, incentives, and decision-making structures around student mobility rather than institutional convenience. Innovation, in this context, is not about new programs, but about reimagining how authority, data, and accountability are used to support seamless student pathways at scale.
To collaborate effectively, leaders must intentionally cultivate trust, shared responsibility, and aligned purpose across diverse institutions. The presentation underscores that collaboration is not a natural outcome of good intentions; it is a leadership practice that requires clear expectations, transparent data, and a willingness to confront misalignment. Through examples from large-scale system reform, the session illustrates how leaders can foster collaboration that respects institutional missions while holding the system collectively accountable for transfer student success.
Finally, the presentation invites leaders to celebrate not only outcomes, but the cultural shift that makes those outcomes possible. Celebrating systemness means recognizing when institutions act in the interest of students and the system as a whole—even when doing so challenges long-standing norms. By embracing innovation, collaboration, and celebration as leadership commitments, leaders can transform transfer from a persistent pain point into a powerful lever for access, mobility, and student success at scale.
SPEAKER BIOGRAPHY:
Jason E. Lane is an award-winning scholar-practitioner and widely regarded as an architect of systemness in higher education, with a career focused on statewide transfer reform, student success at scale, and the design of coordinated multi-university initiatives. He serves as Senior Advisor to the President of the University of Illinois System and is a Professor of Higher
Education and International Education at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.
He previously held senior executive roles within the State University of New York system, where he led system-wide academic and student success initiatives, including the implementation of SUNY’s Seamless Transfer framework—the largest multi-directional transfer initiative in the nation—reducing credit loss, shortening time to degree, and improving outcomes for transfer students across community colleges, comprehensive universities, and research universities.
Dr. Lane is lead author of the national report The Emerging Role of Public Higher Education Systems in Advancing Transfer Student Success and has published more than 12 books, including Higher Education Systems 3.0 and Higher Education Systems Redesigned. He serves as Board Chair of the National Center for Higher Education Management Systems (NCHEMS), co-led NASH’s Taking Student Success to Scale (TS3) initiative—cited by President Barack Obama as a major effort to increase college completion—and has served as Senior Fellow and President of the National Association of Higher Education Systems. He is also a senior fellow of the Association of Governing Boards (AGB), director of AGB’s Institute for Leadership and Governance
and a frequent keynote speaker and consultant for state systems, governing boards, and national policy organizations.
Estimated time: Speech 60 Minutes --- Question and Answers 15-20 Minutes
NOTE: If you have technical difficulties, please call 334-670-3691 or email shannon@alabamatransfers.com.
Dr. Eloy Oakley
President/CEO of the College Futures Foundation
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Dr. Stephen Handel
Chief of Staff, Senior Advisor to the President - ECMC Foundation
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Dr. Loida González Utley
Director of Recruitment and Enrollment Services at Texas A&M University–Central Texas
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Manny Smith (Moderator)
Founder and CEO of EdVisorly
DISCUSSION PANEL
3/4/26 -- 1:00 PM CENTRAL TIME
Reimagining Transfer: Scaling Seamless Transfer Through People, Policy, Process, and Technology
PANEL TOPIC:
Transfer is a critical pathway to statewide completion, yet students still face barriers such as credit loss, inconsistent evaluation, and administrative delays. Improving transfer success requires more than policy—it requires modern systems, collaboration, and innovation. This panel will highlight how institutions and state systems can work together to modernize transfer through stronger articulation, shared responsibility, and innovative solutions.
Leaders from transfer forward institutions, state systems, and foundations will participate in a moderated panel to discuss their experience designing, building and leading some of America’s most effective transfer ecosystems. We will explore how people, policies, processes, and technology form the foundation for successful transfer outcomes. Participants will leave with forward-looking strategies for scaling transfer success across the United States and Alabama.
ABOUT THE PANELISTS:
Dr. Eloy Oakley
President & CEO of the College Futures Foundation and a former transfer student himself, Eloy is an Army special forces veteran who previously served as the Superintendent-President of Long Beach City College before being appointed as the Chancellor for California Community College. In that role, he led 116 campuses serving roughly 2.4 million students annually and advanced major system reforms—including the Vision for Success, California College Promise, and transfer- and completion-focused innovations designed to improve equity and student outcomes across the state.
Dr. Stephen Handel
Stephen J. Handel, PhD works across ECMC Foundation’s leadership team to advance strategic and operational priorities that improve postsecondary opportunity and completion. Dr. Handel is a former community college student. In his previous national leadership roles—as College Board Senior Strategist and as chief admission officer for the University of California (UC) System—he helped shape large-scale freshman and community college transfer policy and practice across UC’s undergraduate campuses, bringing deep expertise in how systems can reduce friction in transfer pathways. A long-time voice on transfer and equity, Handel is the co-author of multiple books and monographs focused on community college transfer, advising, and student transition—including Beyond Free College and The Promise of the Transfer Pathway—and has published widely in higher-ed and national outlets.
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Dr. Loida González Utley
Dr. Loida González Utley serves as Director of Recruitment and Enrollment Services at Texas A&M University–Central Texas, where she leads strategic initiatives focused on transfer pathways, enrollment growth, and student success. With more than a decade of experience in higher education, her work centers on learning mobility, equitable credit recognition, and building systems that turn opportunity into outcomes. She is the Conference Director for AACRAO’s national Learning Mobility conference, The Assembly, and host of the Transfer Tea podcast, where she amplifies conversations shaping the future of credit and transfer. Dr. González Utley recently completed her Ed.D. in Educational Leadership, with research exploring the experiences of community college professionals supporting transfer-intending students who do not complete the transfer process.
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Manny Smith (Moderator)
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Manny Smith is the Founder and CEO of EdVisorly, an AI enabled platform connecting community college students with 4-year universities to improve transfer success and degree completion. He graduated from the US Air Force Academy as a first-generation college student and spent 8 years active duty, serving as a technical program manager where he developed and launched satellite systems and software. Influenced by his experiences, Manny pursued an MBA at University of California, Berkeley’s Haas School of Business where he founded EdVisorly as a platform to transform community college to 4-year bachelor’s degree completion. EdVisorly helps freshmen and sophomores build clear and accessible pathways to complete their bachelor’s degree at 4-year universities. In 2023, EdVisorly was selected to participate in EY’s Entrepreneur Access Network, and one of 20 companies chosen as part of Google’s 2024 Black and Latino Founders Fund. In addition to building EdVisorly, Manny is on the Board of Directors for Silicon Valley Social Venture Fund (SV2). As a former Division 1 athlete (track and football), Manny enjoys working out and training.
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Estimated time: Panel Discussion 60 Minutes --- Question and Answers 15-20 Minutes
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NOTE: If you have technical difficulties, please call 334-670-3691 or email shannon@alabamatransfers.com.
Dr. Robin McGill
Deputy Director of Academic Affairs
Alabama Commission on Higher Ed
SPECIAL PRESENTATION
3/4/26 -- 3:00 PM CENTRAL TIME
State of Transfer in Alabama: Data Deep Dive with ACHE
PRESENTATION OVERVIEW:
As part of its agency responsibilities for data reporting, the Alabama Commission on Higher Education (ACHE) publishes term-by-term reports on student transfers. These reports offer valuable insight into the behaviors of transfer students moving across sectors and between institutions, but they do not allow for a comprehensive view of the transfer system as a whole.
This session aims to provide a broader view of the transfer student data, showing trends over time, with a particular focus on two-year to four-year transfer pathways. ACHE will provide an analysis of transfer student enrollments by destination major, associate degree completion, and other factors of interest to leaders at two-year and four-year institutions. ACHE will also encourage institutional stakeholders to offer feedback on what data would bemmost useful to include in a larger written report on the state of transfer.
ABOUT THE SPEAKER:
Dr. Robin McGill serves as the chief academic and student success officer at the Alabama Commission on Higher Education. She manages ACHE's instructional portfolio for Alabama's public colleges and universities, which includes program review, education and workforce policies, and student success initiatives. Prior to joining ACHE in May 2019, she worked as Director of Strategic Initiatives for the Rhode Island Office of the Postsecondary Commissioner, where she provided system-wide leadership on institutional effectiveness, data governance, and strategic finance. Dr. McGill has presented in local, regional, and national settings on higher education topics ranging from AI in higher education to workforce alignment and rural postsecondary opportunities. Her training is in classical literature, and she has taught courses in literature, languages, and history to undergraduates and high school students.
Estimated time: Presentation 60 Minutes --- Question and Answers 15-20 Minutes
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NOTE: If you have technical difficulties, please call 334-670-3691 or email shannon@alabamatransfers.com.
DAY 3
MARCH 5TH - THURSDAY
Dr. Matt Newlin
Founder and Principal of Matt Newlin Consulting
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Speaker Introduction by Dr. Albert Russell (Alabama State University)
KEYNOTE SPEAKER
3/5/26 -- 10:00 AM CENTRAL TIME
Beyond the Degree: How Higher Education, Employers, and Communities Build Opportunity Together
PRESENTATION OVERVIEW:
As workforce demands evolve and emerging technologies reshape how learning connects to work, higher education is being called to move beyond the degree as the sole marker of readiness and success. For transfer students, and particularly those from rural communities and first-generation backgrounds, opportunity is shaped by how well institutions, employers, and communities work together to recognize talent, value experience, and create clear pathways to meaningful careers.
This keynote invites participants to innovate and collaborate to create new approaches to workforce development that intentionally align transfer pathways with regional labor market needs. Drawing on labor market data, employer partnerships, and student experiences, the session explores how colleges and universities can expand technical and job-ready credentials, more fully award credit for prior learning and workforce experience, and responsibly integrate artificial intelligence across advising, instruction, and workforce alignment.
With a focus on rural communities, this session highlights the power of cross-sector collaboration among two- and four-year institutions, employers, and local partners to transform transfer from a point of transition into a platform for economic mobility. Attendees will leave with practical insights for building systems that honor students’ experiences while strengthening local workforce ecosystems, proving that opportunity is built not in isolation, but together.
SPEAKER BIOGRAPHY:
Dr. Matt Newlin is the Founder and Principal of Matt Newlin Consulting, where he partners with colleges, universities, and organizations to advance equity and student success for rural, first-generation, and low-income learners. With 20 years of experience in higher education, Matt brings deep expertise in student success, financial aid, and equity-centered program design. He also serves as Senior Education Designer for Rural Initiatives at Education Design Lab, collaborating with institutions nationwide to reimagine pathways that better serve rural communities. Matt is the creator and host of The Rural College Student Experience podcast, which centers rural student voices and elevates practitioner and scholar perspectives on access and belonging. A published scholar, he has contributed book chapters focused on rural students and first-generation college students. Matt’s work bridges research, practice, and storytelling, with a commitment to building partnerships that expand opportunity and strengthen higher education systems across the country.
Estimated time: Speech 60 Minutes --- Question and Answers 15-20 Minutes
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NOTE: If you have technical difficulties, please call 334-670-3691 or email shannon@alabamatransfers.com.
Dr. Keith Sessions
Executive Director
Alabama Transfers
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Mr. Shannon Nichols
Assistant Director - IT
Alabama Transfers
ALABAMA TRANSFERS UPDATE & WEBSITE TOUR
3/5/26 -- 1:00 PM CENTRAL TIME
Get to Know the New and Improved Alabama Transfers! >>> AN INFORMAL WEBSITE TOUR
PRESENTATION OVERVIEW:
Have you heard of Alabama Transfers (formerly known as STARS), but aren't quite sure what it is or how it supports transfer students across Alabama? Join us for this informal, hour-long website tour hosted by Keith Sessions and Shannon Nichols, who together bring over 60 years of statewide transfer expertise.
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We'll cover the program's history, demonstrate how students and advisors use the transfer guide system, and highlight other helpful tools and features on the Alabama Transfers website. The session will include plenty of time for questions through Zoom chat and Q&A.
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Our goal is to help educators, advisors, students, and families throughout Alabama better understand Alabama Transfers and its role in simplifying the transfer process—making it easier to navigate the "transfer maze" while saving time, credits, and money.
ABOUT YOUR TOUR GUIDES:
Keith Sessions is the Executive Director of Alabama Transfers, the statewide transfer and articulation support program powered by the Alabama Articulation and General Studies Committee (AGSC). In this role, he leads efforts to streamline and improve the transfer of college credits between two- and four-year public institutions across the state, helping students save time and money on their educational pathways. He has decades of experience in higher education and has been a key figure in Alabama’s transfer system for many years.
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Shannon Nichols is the Assistant Director and IT Manager for Alabama Transfers, the statewide transfer and articulation support program powered by the Alabama Articulation and General Studies Committee (AGSC). In this role, he supports the administration and technology systems that underpin student transfer services and works closely with the Executive Director to manage Alabama Transfers’ database, website, and information systems. Shannon has devoted over 30 years to the Alabama Transfers program and higher education in Alabama, bringing long-standing experience in transfer policy, technology management, and statewide coordination to his work.
Estimated time: Speech 60 Minutes --- Question and Answers 15-20 Minutes
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NOTE: If you have technical difficulties, please call 334-670-3691 or email shannon@alabamatransfers.com.
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Heather Yush, M.S.
Senior Director of College Relations
PTK Connect
Amber Martinez
Interim Director of Admission
Athens State University
SPECIAL PRESENTATION
3/5/26 -- 3:00 PM CENTRAL TIME
PTK Direct Admission: A Fast Track for Transfer Success
PRESENTATION OVERVIEW:
This session introduces PTK Direct Admission, a one-of-a-kind fast-track transfer pathway created by Phi Theta Kappa to streamline admission for high-achieving community college students. PTK Direct Admission reduces friction and guesswork by allowing prospective transfer students to signal interest and receive expedited entry to partner institutions—often with waived application fees, automatic scholarships, and honors college benefits. Interim Director of Admission, Amber Martinez, of Athens State University will co-present, sharing firsthand insights as the first institution in Alabama to implement PTK Direct Admission. Attendees will learn how the program works within PTK Connect, what participation looks like from an institutional perspective, and how this innovative model saves time, eases student stress, strengthens transfer pipelines, and drives intentional, high-quality enrollment growth.
ABOUT THE SPEAKER(S):
Heather Yush is a first-generation college graduate of Marietta College and a former student-athlete who has spent nearly two decades exploring what colleges seek in students—and what students seek in colleges. Building on her liberal arts undergraduate education, she earned a master’s in experimental psychology from Ohio University and has worked across community colleges and four-year institutions in admissions, recruiting, advising, coaching, and instruction.
Now in her 10th year at Phi Theta Kappa, Heather serves as Senior Director of College Relations, advancing access and opportunity for high-achieving, transfer-bound students—including Direct Admission through the PTK Connect platform. Based in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, she and her husband, a University of Alabama coach, remain deeply connected to the student-athlete experience and the transformative power of higher education.
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With over a decade of experience in higher education, Amber Martinez has dedicated her career to helping people grow—students, colleagues, and leaders alike. As the Interim Director of Admissions at Athens State University, she leads a talented team of transfer advisors, processors, and enrollment professionals, all committed to creating a welcoming, student-centered admissions experience. Outside of work, Amber mentors high school students through the AUM Foundation, guiding them through college preparation and teaching leadership development. She enjoys spending time outside with her two dogs and dabbling in watercolors.
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Estimated time: Presentation 60 Minutes --- Question and Answers 15-20 Minutes
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NOTE: If you have technical difficulties, please call 334-670-3691 or email shannon@alabamatransfers.com.
END OF CONFERENCE
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