A key part of the mission for the Associated Colleges of the South is development of higher education leaders at all levels of the university. Some of our on-going initiatives are identified here.
ACS Academic Leadership Fellows
The Associated Colleges of the South (ACS) Academic Leadership Fellows program is a two-year embedded fellowship for tenured humanities faculty who aspire to administrative leadership roles in higher education. The program is designed to transform senior leadership by integrating fellows’ expertise in humanistic inquiry into institutional strategy and decision-making, fostering leadership that is reflective, collaborative, and grounded in the liberal arts tradition.
Each fellow will take on a two-year role at their institution involving a portfolio of responsibilities or a distinct institutional project. Fellows receive a release from certain teaching responsibilities, along with a stipend and professional development fund. Each fellow will also benefit from two mentors—one on their home campus and one external expert in higher education administration.
The fellows take part in cohort programming and professional development aimed at fully supporting their transition into higher education leadership. Fellows will participate in meetings with experts on topics relevant to higher education administration, campus visits to participating institutions, and monthly virtual gatherings for networking and sharing experiences and best practices. In addition, there are periodic gatherings of fellows from ACS with other consortia offering similar programming.