150+ university leaders gather at Stevens for the Inside Higher Ed US Universities Summit
The Inside Higher Ed US Universities Summit brought together 150+ presidents, chancellors and provosts at Stevens Institute of Technology for two days of substantive dialogue about higher education's future.
Co-organized with Stevens in Hoboken, overlooking Manhattan, this invitation-only summit held Oct. 13–14, 2025, addressed what participants called "the perfect storm" — declining federal funding, demographic shifts, political pressures and AI's rapid evolution.
"We had no idea just how much disruption we would be facing," said Stevens President Nariman Farvardin in his opening remarks, acknowledging the unexpected challenges reshaping the landscape since the summit was first planned.
The choice of Stevens as host proved fitting. As an institution that has embraced transformation — recently featured in Jeffrey Selingo's New York Times bestseller Dream School as a "New Dream School" for its focus on experiential learning and career outcomes — Stevens exemplifies how universities can thrive by leaning into change rather than resisting it.
Conversations evolved throughout the two days. "The discussions became better and better over time," Farvardin observed. "This last session was the best of all because we opened up." Leaders moved beyond surface-level dialogue to tackle difficult topics: the tension between consensus and innovation, shared governance challenges and whether higher education's fundamental approach needs to change.
Through panels featuring speakers like Tim Urban (Wait But Why, pictured above) and former NSF Director Dr. Sethuraman Panchanathan, plus closed-door roundtables and a dinner cruise on the Hudson River, attendees built relationships and shared strategies for leading through unprecedented change.
The summit demonstrated that honest dialogue about hard truths — not just polite exchange of best practices — is what today's higher education leaders need most.
