ASU+GSV forms new higher education board as AI pressure mounts on universities

The ASU+GSV Summit has launched a new Higher Education Insights Board, bringing together more than 40 college presidents and chancellors as AI, enrollment strain, and workforce shifts accelerate across the sector.

ASU+GSV Summit has launched a new Higher Education Insights Board, assembling more than 40 presidents and chancellors from public, private, and community colleges to advise on the future of higher education as artificial intelligence, affordability pressures, and workforce realignment reshape the sector.

The new board is positioned as a strategic advisory body focused on what ASU+GSV describes as a period of convergence between generative and agentic AI, institutional reform, and new models of learning and skills delivery. Its launch comes as colleges face sustained enrollment pressure, rising costs, and uncertainty around federal policy, while AI adoption continues to outpace shared governance and evidence frameworks.

Michael M. Crow, President of Arizona State University, will serve as Honorary Chair of the board. Members include leaders from a wide range of institutions, spanning research universities, community colleges, fully online providers, and minority-serving institutions.

ASU+GSV frames the board as a forum for collaboration and shared intelligence rather than advocacy, with a remit covering institutional strategy, workforce alignment, and the role of AI in education delivery.

“We are entering the most exciting time in human history. AI has ignited the megatrend of Fusion—a powerful convergence of technology, human creativity, and global collaboration that is unlocking new opportunities for learning, earning, and human flourishing.”

Broad institutional representation

The Higher Education Insights Board includes presidents and executives from institutions such as San Diego State University, Fisk University, Northern Virginia Community College, Brandeis University, Southern New Hampshire University, Western Governors University, University of Phoenix, and University of the People, alongside leaders from statewide systems and education-focused foundations.

ASU+GSV says the mix of public, private, nonprofit, and for-profit institutions is intended to reflect the diversity of higher education models now operating in the U.S., as traditional boundaries between degree programs, credentials, and workforce training continue to blur.

Several board members also hold roles focused on innovation, digital learning, or system-wide reform, underlining the group’s emphasis on operational change rather than long-term theory.

The board’s launch comes ahead of the 17th annual ASU+GSV Summit, scheduled to take place in San Diego from April 12–15, 2026. ASU+GSV reports that attendance across its events has grown from 350 participants in 2010 to more than 12,500 today, reflecting the summit’s expanding influence across education and workforce learning.

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