More than 700 advancement professionals and experts from around the globe gathered at CASE’s Summit for Leaders in Advancement in July to explore the issues shaping the future of advancement.

Throughout the three-day program in Boston, advancement leaders swapped best practices on supporting students and alumni, inspiring giving, managing reputation, and more.

Here are five key trends in (and takeaways about) advancement and higher education today shared at Summit.

Trend: Communicating the value of higher education. 

Takeaway: Celebrate its benefits.

In one key session, three college presidents and CASE President Sue Cunningham grappled with how education leaders can address public perceptions of higher education. Cost, political divides, and the changing roles of academic institutions have impacted how higher education is viewed, said Robert Brown, president of Boston University.

In this environment, universities have to stay true to their mission and values, stressed Carolyn Stefanco, president of the College of Saint Rose.

“There are a lot of challenges, but so many joys (in education),” she said. “We need to spend more time talking about the joys of higher education.”

Trend: Making our institutions inclusive and diverse.

Takeaway: Tackle tough (but vital) conversations about diversity.

Discussions about diversity are challenging, but essential for strengthening higher education and society at large, emphasized writer Ijeoma Oluo in her keynote, “So You want to Talk About Race: The Conversations We Aren’t Having—But Need to Have—to Advance Our Institutions.” The world is diversifying, she said. Who do we want our graduates in 10 years to be?

“Building racially conscious students is important not just for a good society but also for students to be able to collaborate, to relate to others,” she said. “There's just no way that you’ll be serving your community if you’re not preparing students for a diverse world.”

Trend: Boosting access to higher education. 

Takeaway: Institutions must focus on partnerships and affordability.

In “Engines of Social Mobility: How Education Does—and Doesn’t—Transform Communities,” Nancy Cantor, chancellor of Rutgers University, explained that affordability and partnerships are key to transforming institutions. The students who have enrolled in higher education have changed, pointed out panelist Wil Del Pilar, vice president of higher education policy and practice at the Education Trust, but our methods to serve them have not.

Trend: Being data-driven. 

Takeaway: Data alone isn’t an answer; integrate data with context, emotions, and stories.

“More data doesn’t lead to better decisions,” pointed out keynote speaker Tricia Wang, co-founder of Sudden Compass, a data analysis firm. Advancement and education are about serving people, so we can’t eliminate the human element from our decision-making and analysis. She suggests integrating big and what she calls “thick” data: the information from humans that captures the full context of their emotions and stories.

Find the sources of thick data in your work—then bring your thick data and big data experts together to strategize.

Trend: Leading a team amid tough challenges. 

Takeaway: Know yourself and your team—and step outside your comfort zone for key projects.

In her closing keynote session, Susan Cain, author of Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World that Can’t Stop Talking, explained that extroverts and introverts can approach the same job differently, and everyone has a comfort zone. When should a leader and her team leave that comfort zone?

“Focus on figuring out what are your core projects,” said Cain. “Who are the people and causes you’re completely dedicated to? In the service of those core projects, step outside your comfort zone.”