The day after the 2016 US presidential election, a dean asked me whether we should send a campuswide email reminding students that the counseling center could help them through distress. Within a year, alumni asked our college president to speak out about federal policy changes that did not affect our campus. Later, students pleaded for the college’s social media accounts to condemn students whom they considered racist—without any investigation.
Beyond Programs: Leadership Lessons from Ireland’s Inclusive Universities
During a recent sabbatical studying inclusive postsecondary education in Ireland, I visited four universities—University College Cork, Trinity College Dublin, Dún Laoghaire Institute of Art, Design and Technology, and Mary Immaculate
Ashley Rodrigues
July 20, 2026
