2025 NEean Fall Forum November 7, 2025 a virtual event Keynote Presentation |
Keynote Presentation Beyond Data: Leveraging Change Management to Maximize Assessment’s Impact in Higher Education Assessment is only as powerful as the change it inspires. Yet too often, assessment results are collected, reported, and shelved—failing to translate into meaningful action. This keynote, grounded in the book Maximizing the Impact of Assessment in Higher Education: Closing the Loop with Change Management, co-edited by Cynthia Cogswell and Gavin W. Henning, challenges higher education leaders to rethink how they approach assessment work. Drawing on organizational change theories and real-world institutional case studies, the talk explores how embedding intentional change management practices within the assessment cycle can build momentum, foster buy-in, and ultimately close the loop in ways that lead to improved learning, development, and institutional effectiveness. Attendees will leave with practical strategies and a renewed vision for how assessment, when coupled with a structured approach to change, can drive continuous improvement across campuses. |
Presenters
Cindy Cogswell, Ph.D. | Cindy Cogswell, Ph.D. has worked in assessment, evaluation, and research since 2011 at private, public, research intensive and Ivy League institutions. In addition to her administrative role as a director of data strategy for student affairs, global programs and university life at New York University, Dr. Cogswell is an adjunct instructor. Her work focuses on strengthening campus efforts to measure and demonstrate impact. She has published more than 20 peer reviewed publications and delivered more than 40 peer reviewed sessions in four countries on an array of topics in higher education. Cogswell has presented and published in higher education outlets, including among others the Journal of Effective Teaching Strategies, Assessment Update, and with the National Institute for Learning Outcomes Assessment. |
Gavin Henning, Ph.D. | Gavin Henning, Ph.D. is a professor of higher education at New England College in New Hampshire, where he directs the Doctor of Education and Master of Science in Higher Education Administration Programs and the Center for Innovation in Teaching, Learning, and Scholarship. Gavin is a past president of ACPA–College Student Educators International and the Council for the Advancement of Standards in Higher Education (CAS). He has over 25 years of experience in assessment and institutional research and consults and presents regionally, nationally, and internationally. His scholarship includes nearly 200 peer-reviewed presentations and over 100 invited presentations and keynotes. In addition, he has published numerous articles, book chapters, and books regarding assessment, including Student Affairs Assessment: Theory to Practice, Coordinating Divisional and Departmental Student Affairs Assessment, Reframing Assessment to Center Equity: Theories, Models, and Practices, and his most recent book, which he co-edited with Cindy Cogswell, Maximizing the Impact of Assessment in Higher Education: Closing the Loop with Change Management. He is a past recipient of the NASPA George D. Kuh Outstanding Contribution to Literature and Research. Gavin earned his Ph.D. in Education Leadership and Policy Studies from the University of New Hampshire. |
