Resilient University: How Purpose and Inclusion Drive Student Success

How university leaders' empowering approach to resiliency was tested by the dual crises of the COVID-19 pandemic and racial unrest.

In 2020, some higher education leaders successfully navigated the unprecedented challenges the year presented and emerged as resilient agents of change in their academic communities. Freeman A. Hrabowski III was one of many leaders who followed the science during the pandemic and followed his heart in the fight for racial justice, even though the science was often playing catch-up with the virus, and campuses were playing catch-up on the history of race in our country. This precarious position often left higher education leaders in the disquieting position of making decisions with only partial or changing information.

Drawing from lessons learned in real scenarios, the authors provide practical recommendations for empowering colleagues, cultivating resilience and courage, and sustaining purpose and inclusion within institutions. Building on Hrabowski's previous book The Empowered University, The Resilient University offers university leaders invaluable insight into how the qualities of openness, resilience, courage, passion, and hope can be harnessed in times of crisis to guide their institutions to thrive.

Freeman A. Hrabowski III served as president of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County from 1992 to 2022 and as chair of the President's Commission on Educational Excellence for African Americans under President Obama. He is the author of The Empowered University: Culture Change, Shared Leadership, and Academic Success.

Peter H. Henderson is senior policy advisor to the president at the University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB). He previously served as senior advisor to the president at UMBC and director of the Board on Higher Education and Workforce at the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

Lynne C. Schaefer was vice president for administration and finance at UMBC and is the past president of the National Association of College and University Business Officers.

Philip J. Rous is provost, senior vice president for academic affairs, and a professor of physics at UMBC.