San Francisco Bay University’s Dr. Heather Herrera Featured on Edu Unlocked Podcast
March 30, 2026
San Francisco Bay University (SFBU) Vice President for Strategy and Innovation Dr. Heather Herrera was recently featured on Edu Unlocked, a podcast hosted by higher education leader Ashish Fernando, where she shared insights on transforming institutions to better serve today’s learners.
In a wide-ranging conversation, Dr. Herrera discussed how colleges and universities must evolve to meet the needs of increasingly diverse, career-focused, and nontraditional students. She emphasized that meaningful change requires more than incremental improvement. It calls for rethinking systems, structures, and long-standing assumptions about higher education.
“We have to design institutions around the students we actually serve, not the students higher education was originally built for,” said Dr. Herrera.
Rethinking Systems for Student Success
During the episode, Dr. Herrera highlighted the importance of aligning academic programs, student support, and institutional strategy with real-world outcomes. She noted that student success today depends on flexibility, relevance, and a clear connection between education and career pathways.
Rather than relying on legacy models, she encouraged institutions to adopt data-informed approaches and continuously evaluate how effectively they are supporting learners from enrollment through completion.
Innovation as Institutional Practice
Dr. Herrera also explored what it means to lead innovation at the institutional level. She pointed to the need for cross-functional collaboration and a willingness to challenge traditional silos that can slow progress.
Her work focuses on building systems that are not only innovative, but also sustainable and scalable. This includes embedding accountability and continuous improvement into how universities design curriculum, measure outcomes, and deliver support services.
Advancing SFBU’s Student-Centered Mission
Dr. Herrera’s appearance on Edu Unlocked reflects SFBU’s broader commitment to reimagining higher education through innovation, access, and student-centered design. By focusing on outcomes that matter to students and the workforce, SFBU continues to position itself as a leader in shaping the future of higher education.
