In October, the Board had the pleasure of hosting Scott Jaschik, editor of Inside Higher Ed, for a coffee chat focused on the future of higher education. (See Fast Forward: Considering the “Post-Pandemic” Future of Higher Ed.) Scott’s remarks sparked productive discussions in subsequent breakout rooms—conversations the Board will use to better understand AIR members’ current and future needs considering such rapid change and to wisely direct the future of our association.

Many of the themes we heard in those breakout rooms are echoed throughout this issue of eAIR. The future of our work could entail enhanced collaboration, increased workload, new technologies, predictive analysis, etc. While it’s not possible to predict the future, we can certainly prepare AIR and its stakeholders for multiple likely scenarios.

Throughout the fall, the Board in partnership with the AIR staff have also been analyzing the results of the most recent AIR stakeholder survey. (See also the Executive Director’s take-aways in the article Future Forward: AIR’s Commitment to Advance and Support Our Community.) The data show our community is grappling with new challenges and anticipates doing so into the foreseeable future. The Board is discussing how AIR can best support and lead our community in anticipating, thinking through, and facing these new challenges head-on.

This moment in time offers IR/IE professionals with a critical opportunity to concretely demonstrate their knowledge and expertise in deriving meaning and insights from data. Nearly all administrators require data and analytics to make effective—and equitable—decisions for their students and institutions. The Board is seeking ways to leverage these opportunities to elevate our community and the important, valuable work we do. If you have input or ideas , please don’t hesitate to reach out to me or any of the Board members. We are here for you.