{"type":"rich","version":"1.0","provider_name":"Transistor","provider_url":"https://transistor.fm","author_name":"Small College America","title":"The Changing Role of the Small College Provost","html":"","width":"100%","height":180,"duration":1577,"description":"Kent Barnds: Welcome to Small College America, a podcast dedicated to exploring the role and value of small colleges in the higher education landscape. I'm Kent Barnds, Executive Vice President of Augustana College, and I’m joined by my co-host Dean Hoke, Co-Founder of Edu Alliance Group.\nDean: Today on Small College America, Kent and I are joined by Dr. Greg Piller, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs at Pfeiffer University in North Carolina. Greg joined Pfeiffer in August and his career has unfolded largely within small, private higher education, progressing from professor and department chair to honors director, dean, associate provost, and chief academic officer. Before joining Pfeiffer, he served as Associate Provost at Gardner-Webb University and spent more than 18 years as a faculty member and academic leader at Queens University of Charlotte. \n \nAn environmental chemist by training, Greg brings a scientist’s curiosity to questions of academic leadership, institutional change, and the future of small colleges. His work focuses on connecting institutional mission with the needs of today’s learners while strengthening academic quality, workforce relevance, and long-term sustainability. He also writes and speaks nationally about higher education leadership, accreditation, academic operations, and institutional innovation.\n \nGreg, I found something interesting in your background. Your doctoral research at the University of Georgia examined what happens to TNT when it gets into soil. So, you've gone from studying explosives to becoming a provost—a job that, I suspect, can be pretty explosive at times!\nKent: QUESTION 1 —  Greg, your academic career began in environmental chemistry as a faculty member and researcher. Today, you're the chief academic officer of a university. Take us through that journey. How has your background as a scientist and faculty member shaped the way you approach academic leadership?\nFollow-up: Was there a point when you...","thumbnail_url":"https://img.transistorcdn.com/znlC7CX69qE7r5pUJE2XJslxrx-kQRnGqXvS0RvbqbM/rs:fill:0:0:1/w:400/h:400/q:60/mb:500000/aHR0cHM6Ly9pbWct/dXBsb2FkLXByb2R1/Y3Rpb24udHJhbnNp/c3Rvci5mbS9kMjAw/ZTk5Nzg4NDA4ODlj/NjI1MzgwOTJjYTY5/MmUzYi5wbmc.webp","thumbnail_width":300,"thumbnail_height":300}