President Elizabeth Kiss was part of a recent panel, “New Leaders, New Lens: Inside the Evolving State of Higher Ed,” hosted by the Albany Business Review. From left: moderator Luke Nathan; President Kiss; Matthew Shaftel, president of Russell Sage; and Michael Brophy, president of Hudson Valley Community College. (Photo by Donna Abbott-Vlahos, Albany Business Review)
President Elizabeth Kiss was among three newly appointed college presidents invited to share their thoughts on how they are redefining leadership at a time of rapid change and financial pressure for a panel, “New Leaders, New Lens: Inside the Evolving State of Higher Ed.”
Hosted by the Albany Business Review, the panel also included Michael Brophy, president of Hudson Valley Community College and Matthew Shaftel, president of Russell Sage.
It was held April 22 at the Carver Companies Corporate Office Auditorium in Albany.
Moderated by Luke Nathan, a reporter for the Business Review, the panel spent more than an hour engaging in a thoughtful and informative session for an audience of 150 local business and education leaders.
Panelists discussed the fresh strategies, tough decisions and forward-thinking approaches they are bringing to some of higher education's most urgent challenges - including enrollment uncertainty, shifting student expectations, workforce needs and campus financial sustainability.
Kiss shared some of the creative and innovative efforts Union has taken to compete in a challenging landscape, including working with Art & Science to acquire detailed data on how the College can drive enrollment growth. She also touched on the introduction of microcredentials and the recent partnership with the University of Rochester’s Simon Business School to offer students a streamlined path to earning a master’s degree in business.
Kiss officially began her tenure as Union’s 20th president last July.
She is the first woman to lead the College in its 231-year history.
From August 2018 to January 2025, Kiss led the Rhodes Trust in Oxford, UK, a global higher education charity and the administrator of the renowned Rhodes Scholarship program.
She also spent 12 years as president of Agnes Scott College, a private women's liberal arts college outside of Atlanta.
Kiss’ leadership was recognized by The Chronicle of Higher Education, which named her one of the most influential people in U.S. higher education in 2017.