Today, Antioch University is announcing our next President: Lori Erica Varlotta. In preparation for this announcement, we sat down with Lori for a wide-ranging conversation about what makes Antioch special, her experiences and wisdom drawn from decades as a leader in higher education, and the challenges and opportunities that she, as our next university leader, sees for our institution during a time when colleges and universities across the U.S. are being pressured and threatened in unprecedented ways.

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To learn more about Lori, visit the Incoming President webpage on Antioch’s website, where you’ll find the announcement and welcome video, press release, a brief bio, her CV, selected publications, and a form where you can leave a note for the Incoming President.

The two essays referenced in the episode are “Lipstick Leadership in Higher Education” at the Chronicle of Higher Education and Lori’s blog post on “Experiential Adult Education: Living and Practicing Democracy in Higher Learning.”

This episode was recorded April 28, 2025 via Squadcast and released May 7, 2025.

The Seed Field Podcast is produced by Antioch University

Host: Jasper Nighthawk

Editor: Nastasia Green

Web Content Coordinator: Jen Mont

Work-Study Assistants: Stefanie Paredes, Lauren Arienzale, Dani LaPointe, and Liza Wisner.

Additional Production Help: Karen Hamilton, Melinda Garland, and Laurien Alexandre.

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To access a full transcript and find more information about this and other episodes, visit theseedfield.org. To get updates and be notified about future episodes, follow Antioch University on Facebook.