ALP: The Admissions Leadership Podcast
Ken Anselment hosts a series of one-on-one conversations with people who have been climbing the leadership mountain in the world of college admissions. Some are nearing the summit. Some are already there. But how did they get there? And what can other climbers learn from their mindsets, habits, and experiences? © Ken Anselment 2024
ALP: The Admissions Leadership Podcast
Jen Gagne: Laughter, Leadership and Memorable Rituals
Even though we've only known each other for less than two years, this episode feels like one between two old friends. The newly-minted Dr. Jen Gagne, Executive Director of Admissions at Colorado School of Mines, brings warmth and wit while digging into important stuff: pathways to thriving for queer-spectrum students, how she navigated being an internal candidate, why grad schools are structurally “separate and replicated,” and a spot-on pattern-match between kindergarteners and first-year college students.
We also hit college football haircuts (yes, really), her terrific bucket-list twist on the B&B.
Stick around for the epilogue where we swap stories about high-touch, memorable college welcome rituals that create community and belonging.
Highlights
00:00 — An unusual opening and origin stories
03:30 — Overseeing undergrad and grad admissions at Colorado School of Mines.
04:50 — Mountains, mines, and the glowing “M” that lights up Golden.
05:50 — College football haircuts and mustaches (look it up, friends).
06:30 — From interim to Executive Director.
08:10 — Doctoral work on queer-spectrum students and the college experience.
09:30 — Language matters: why Jen uses “queer spectrum and trans spectrum.”
11:00 — Invisible minorities, safe-space signals, and vanishing LGBTQ centers.
15:20 — Inside view: navigating the tricky path of being an internal candidate.
19:30 — A non-traditional path through advising, career, and student life to EM.
22:20 — Why graduate admissions feels “separate and replicated.”
26:30 — The complexity of overlapping grad cycles and constant motion.
29:50 — Finding community and confidence in Colorado’s admissions network.
31:20 — Leadership in flux: “If you say you know what to do, you’re lying or delusional.”
33:35 — Pattern matching: how kindergartners and first-year students share the same transition.
36:00 — Rapid Descent, (HOT TO GO!, Handsome, and The Speed of Trust)
45:15 — Epilogue: Helluva Welcome week, ten-pound rocks, whitewashing the “M,” and hard-hats. Also, class colors, dirt and the formula for chlorophyll.
The ALP is supported by RHB, a division of SIG. Music arranged by Ryan Anselment