On January 4, 2006, my wife and I walked into our first Council of Independent Colleges annual meeting at the Registry Hotel in Naples, Florida. As two Midwesterners raised in middle-class families, this was an eye-opening moment. The lobby was absolutely beautiful, the service was first-class, and the hotel was so tall that the elevator skipped the unlucky 13th floor on its way to greater heights.

This is the year we take a stand.

Many believe that we are already well into the transition era from one incarnation of higher learning to another. For some institutions, that likely translates to “become the next-generation version of yourself or die,” as the current closure rate implies. Is major transformation a realistic option? Where do leaders even start?