Trailblazers: Get to know the Salesforce.org Higher Education Advisory Council

By: The Officers of the Higher Education Advisory Council: Chair Kathleen Lueckeman, Maryville University, Vice Chair Laura Campbell, Algonquin College, Secretary Florence Parodi, University of Miami, Committee Chair Amjad Ayoubi, Tulane University,
Immediate Past Chair Colleen Whelan, Providence College

Whether you’re just exploring Salesforce or you implemented years ago, you probably have asked yourself, “What is this thing called Salesforce for Higher Ed?” and wished you could talk to someone who blazed the trail before you. Great news: The Salesforce.org Higher Education Advisory Council members will be at Dreamforce and are happy to meet you and answer questions – from getting started to scaling functionality for the enterprise to product-specific questions and more.

How can you connect with Advisory Council members?

Higher Ed Kickoff, Tuesday at 9 a.m. at the Hilton Union Square
Be sure to look for the special Dreamforce pin to find council members during the kickoff session. Plus, Tuesday is spirit day and advisory council members will be decked out in their school during to make it even easier to find them. But spirit day isn’t just for the council! All higher eds are asked to wear their school colors on Tuesday – a t-shirt, sweatshirt, pullover or other gear – to identify yourself with your school. It’s a great way to find people at the schools you have heard so much about and want to learn from during this action-packed conference.

Higher Ed Office Hours Live, Wednesday at 12:30 p.m. in the Westin St. Francis
Each month, council members host a call-in program to answer questions, discuss use cases, share best practices and more during Higher Ed Office Hours. Don’t miss the LIVE version at Dreamforce. You’ll get a chance to put faces to the voices you hear every month and discuss the topics important to you and your implementation.

Salesforce.org Reception, Thursday at 4:30 p.m. in the Salesforce.org Lodge at the Westin St. Francis
Watch for advisory council members at the reception. As part of their commitment to the community, members will be circulating, introducing higher ed peeps to each other and taking time to share their experience and knowledge about the platform.

Breakout Sessions
An impressive accomplishment: Nine of the 25 higher ed sessions at Dreamforce are led by advisory council members. If you’ve included higher ed sessions in your agenda, you’re likely attending one led by a member. Don’t hesitate to introduce yourself as you’re getting seated or connect after the session to get to know our community leaders.

Solution Exchange station in the Salesforce.org Lodge at the Westin St. Francis
Members also will make appearances at the Solution Exchange station in the Salesforce.org Lodge. The Solution Exchange is a new feature of the Power of Us Hub and is a powerful tool to explore what other schools have done with the platform.

Not attending Dreamforce?

Never fear: In addition to our monthly Higher Ed Office Hours session, you can join in on the conversation in the Power of Us Hub. Advisory Council members are active in the Sector: Higher Education Chatter group. It’s a private group – no partners or vendors allowed – so click the Ask to Join link and introduce yourself. This community is incredibly generous about sharing their experiences and the Hub is the perfect vehicle to learn all about higher ed use cases and implementations.

Get Involved Today

One of the best investments you can make during Dreamforce is to get know others in the community. Introduce yourself and ask people about their use of Salesforce. Two simple sentences with one person per session will grow your network exponentially – and it’s easy to do, even for an introvert. It’s even easier to meet the advisory council. Make an effort to say hello, tap into the power of our community and blaze your own trail.

About the Authors
The Salesforce.org Higher Education Advisory council is a customer-led group of veteran users and evangelists. The executive committee represents the officers of the advisory council, all of whom are long-time users and evangelists of the Salesforce platform. In fact, all have co-hosted a major Salesforce.org event – the first CIO Summit, the first Canadian workshop and Higher Ed Summit (one, three and four!). Nominations to the council are accepted until July 30 annually and members are appointed to a one-year term that starts Oct. 1. Lean more about the council on the Salesforce.org site.

OFFICERS
Chair: Kathy Lueckeman, Maryville University
Vice Chair: Laura Campbell, Algonquin College
Secretary: Florence Parodi, University of Miami
Committees Chair: Amjad Ayoubi, Tulane University
Past Chair: Colleen Whelan, Providence College
Salesforce.org Liaison: Chris Coppa, Success Engagement Director

MEMBERS
Stewart Anderson, University of Edinburgh-Edinburgh Research and Innovation
Jace Bryan, Texas A&M-Commerce
Cheryl Cerny, Worchester Polytechnic Institute
Brian Gnatt, University of Maryland-University College
Joanna Iturbe, University of Colorado-Boulder
Rebecca Joffrey, Cornell University
Tom Kelleher, San Francisco State University
Phillip Knutel, Babson College
Yannick Lejeune, Ionis Education Group
Melissa Kwilosz, Arizona State University
Carrie Otto, University of Minnesota
Deborah Paterick, University of Arizona
Erin Smith, Northeastern University
Kalman Sweetwine, University of Colorado-Boulder
Chris Tompkins, Indiana University

Most members are active on Twitter, too, so be sure to follow members during Dreamforce. Your feed will be filled with live updates during sessions and a ton of other content goodness.