The Resilience Imperative: Serving the New Majority of Non-Traditional Students

Non-traditional students now make up the majority of learners in higher education—students who are working, parenting, returning after a break, or attending part-time. This shift is fundamentally reshaping enrollment, persistence, and the financial model of higher education.This session convenes higher education leaders for a critical conversation about what it takes for institutions to adapt and remain at the forefront of meeting the needs of non-traditional learners. Together, they will highlight the evidence-based strategies driving results: leveraging enterprise-grade AI to provide proactive advising and persistence supports; building stackable, workforce-aligned credential pathways that improve speed to value; redesigning enrollment and academic calendars for flexibility; and strengthening financial resilience through models that grow access without shifting costs to students.At its core, this is a conversation about institutional readiness—and how designing for the new majority of students is no longer simply about access, but a defining strategy for higher education’s future.