In July, AAC&U partnered with ABC Insights to conduct a survey of Presidents’ Trust members. Instead of operating in “panic mode,” most presidents are maintaining their cautious optimism as they look forward to the fall. Taken together, the findings signal a resolve on the part of presidents across the higher education landscape to protect students and the core educational mission of their institutions by avoiding tuition increases and cuts to academic programs, focusing instead on reductions in operational expenses and staffing. At the same time, presidents are expecting an increase in organized student activism this fall while making an array of long- and short-term plans to address racial injustice and systemic racism on their campuses.

In 2007, when AAC&U was leading the development of the VALUE (Valid Assessment of Learning in Undergraduate Education) rubrics, we hadn’t anticipated a pandemic sweeping across higher education or that so many accepted expectations and patterns of behavior would be disrupted. Now, those of us working in higher education need to take a breath and think about what we can do next given the remaining uncertainty about the future. The good news is that several resources are already available to help faculty and staff rethink teaching and learning—especially as they focus on affirming the quality of student learning. We need to seize the opportunity to act!