Wednesday, April 8  |  4:30pm - 5:30pm

ARC2026 opens with a fireside conversation featuring Sal Khan, founder and CEO of Khan Academy, whose work embodies how a clear mission— translated into purposeful action— can spark transformative impact for learners and institutions alike. 

Together, we will explore how higher education can navigate a rapidly evolving landscape shaped by AI, new delivery models, and emerging opportunities. Khan will share forward-looking perspectives on how collaboration and innovation can expand access, strengthen outcomes, and shape the future of learning in an increasingly competitive landscape. This plenary sets the stage for ARC2026’s charge: turning mission into action, and action into lasting impact. 

Thursday, April 9  |  10:30am - 11:30am

American higher education did not drift into market behavior by accident. Today’s landscape was constructed by powerful federal policy shifts and competitive pressures that catalyzed innovation while quietly creating structural imbalance. 

In Capitalizing on College, Joshua Travis Brown tells the untold story of the “Missing Middle,” tuition-driven institutions deeply committed to access and opportunity yet increasingly shaped by market competition. Drawing on interviews with more than 150 university leaders, he traces how demographic shifts and policy incentives pushed colleges to pursue four distinct strategies in a competition for tuition dollars. Each strategy was rational and, in many cases, necessary. Yet only one generated sufficient margin to sustain the residential core, and it did so at a cost: undercutting their mission by leading them to view students as dollars. 

This plenary distills what those past crises teach us about leading now. It invites ARC participants to consider how institutions can pursue innovation with discipline and courage, ensuring that financial sustainability strengthens mission rather than displacing it. 

Friday, April 10  |  11:00am - 12:00pm

Join WSCUC leadership, staff, and commissioners for the ARC2026 Town Hall: the concluding plenary that begins with an overview of the shifting higher education and accreditation landscape and offers a look at WSCUC’s ongoing and upcoming priorities and initiatives that affect our institutions. 

This interactive session will highlight key activities, policy developments, and strategic directions shaping WSCUC’s work. Participants are invited to submit questions for WSCUC leadership as we reflect on recent progress and look ahead to opportunities that strengthen quality, accountability, and success for all students. 

In addition to attendee-submitted topics, we look forward to discussing: 

• Strategic Perspective for 2026–2028: Update on WSCUC’s strategic direction, the pillars guiding our work (Evidence, Outcomes, Improvement, and Innovation), emerging trends and opportunities, and what they mean for our member institutions. 

• Situational Awareness: Key developments in the accreditor and policy landscape, including federal, state, and emerging areas of focus, and how institutions and accreditors can be prepared. 

• Innovation: How WSCUC approaches innovation— whether large and small—and our firm commitment to supporting institutions as they experiment, adapt, and pursue new practices and models. 

• Advancing WSCUC’s Data Leadership: Updates on accountability metrics, Annual Integrated Monitoring (AIM), and evolving resources and expectations for data use in peer review.