Trimeka Benjamin interviews Dr. Jenna Cullinane Hege about how Austin Community College uses data storytelling to drive institutional change. Dr. Cullinane Hege explains that many people feel overwhelmed by data, so presenting numbers alone rarely motivates action. Instead, institutional research teams must translate data into clear narratives that connect emotionally to the student experience and guide decision-making. The conversation explores how Austin Community College prepared for a major data summit through months of listening sessions and research, how the team created a student persona to humanize institutional data, and how their theory of change focused on improving student momentum. Dr. Cullinane Hege also reflects on early mistakes, particularly overwhelming stakeholders with too much data, and shares practical strategies for helping institutional research teams transform large datasets into compelling stories that lead to action.

• Introduction to the Conversation (00:00:09)
  Trimeka Benjamin introduces Dr. Jenna Cullinane Hege, Vice Chancellor for Institutional Research and Analytics at Austin Community College. She highlights the influence of Dr. Cullinane Hege’s work translating institutional data into meaningful narratives that help leaders, faculty, and staff better understand challenges and align around solutions.
  
  
• What Data Storytelling Means in Higher Education (00:01:24)
  Dr. Cullinane Hege explains that data storytelling involves helping people interpret and connect with data so they can take meaningful action. She notes that many professionals feel overwhelmed when working with data and often avoid data-related tasks. Because of this, presenting statistics without context rarely leads to meaningful institutional change.
  
  
• Why Emotional Connection Matters When Presenting Data (00:02:43)
  Dr. Cullinane Hege explains that data must be connected to human experiences in order to resonate with audiences. When people understand how the numbers affect real students, they are more likely to engage with the information and support institutional change.
  
  
• Why Austin Community College Organized a Data Summit (00:03:35)
  Dr. Cullinane Hege explains that the data summit took place about eight to nine months after leadership began analyzing institutional data. Instead of jumping directly to solutions, leadership gradually introduced observations from the data and helped stakeholders understand the underlying problems before proposing strategies.
  
  
• Preparing the Institution Before the Summit (00:04:49)Trimeka Benjamin describes the extensive groundwork that preceded the summit. The team conducted listening sessions across multiple campuses, distributed surveys, spoke with community leaders, and gathered feedback from students, faculty, and staff. This process allowed the institution to combine quantitative data with lived experiences before presenting a strategy.
  
  
• Building Credibility and Institutional Trust (00:06:06)
  The speakers emphasize the importance of taking time to build credibility before launching a major initiative. The months leading up to the summit helped establish transparency and trust across the institution, ensuring that the summit reflected shared insights rather than top down decisions.
  
  
• Humanizing the Data Through a Student Persona (00:06:21)
  To make the data more relatable, the summit introduced a student persona representing the typical Austin Community College student. This approach helped faculty and staff visualize the student experience and better understand the impact of institutional decisions.
  
  
• Creating the Ashley Student Persona (00:06:34)
  Dr. Cullinane Hege explains that the persona was created by analyzing five years of institutional data along with insights from focus groups and surveys. The persona named Ashley represents a twenty-six-year-old student balancing part-time work, caregiving responsibilities, and education while seeking to improve her life.
  
  
• Using Storytelling to Align Institutional Strategy (00:08:19)
  The discussion highlights how storytelling helps institutions move beyond abstract conversations about transformation and instead focus on clear narratives that guide strategy and decision-making.
  
  
• Austin Community College’s Theory of Change (00:09:12)
  Dr. Cullinane Hege outlines the institution’s theory of change, which centers on helping students start strong, enroll full-time when possible, meet their basic needs, and experience belonging and connection. These factors support the college’s goal of reaching a seventy percent completion or transfer success rate.
  
  
• Identifying Barriers to Student Momentum (00:10:04)
  Through a five year analysis of institutional initiatives, the team identified several systemic barriers preventing students from taking additional courses. These included scheduling difficulties, affordability challenges such as tuition and textbooks, limited engagement with tutoring services, and difficulty accessing courses at convenient times.
  
  
• Developing a Coordinated Strategy for Student Success (00:10:53)
  The research showed that several initiatives could work together to increase student momentum, including improved course scheduling, expanded financial support, stronger tutoring engagement, and wider use of eight week courses.
  
  
• Recognizing Institutional Responsibility for Barriers (00:11:24)
  Dr. Cullinane Hege emphasizes that while students often face complicated life circumstances, institutions must address the barriers within their control. Simplifying systems and improving access to courses and support services can help more students move toward full time enrollment.
  
  
• Early Mistakes in Institutional Data Communication (00:11:58)
  Dr. Cullinane Hege reflects on early mistakes, including overwhelming stakeholders with large amounts of data. Initially, the team relied on dashboards and large datasets, assuming people would explore the information independently.
  
  
• Moving From Data Publishing to Data Translation (00:13:04)
  The team realized that institutional researchers must act as translators, guiding stakeholders through the meaning of the data rather than simply publishing reports.
  
  
• Advice for Institutional Research Teams (00:13:27)
  Dr. Cullinane Hege advises teams to identify the central story within the data. Large datasets alone are not useful unless they are distilled into clear insights that decision makers can understand and act upon.
  
  
• Practicing Data Storytelling Skills (00:14:05)
  She explains that her team practices storytelling exercises during meetings, reviewing interesting datasets and working together to identify the most important insight or headline.
  
  
• The So What Who Cares Now What Framework (00:14:44)
  During these exercises, the team asks three key questions. So what clarifies why the data matters. Who cares identifies the audience that should pay attention to the insight. Now what focuses on what actions should follow.
  
  
• Closing Reflections (00:15:23)
  The conversation concludes with Trimeka Benjamin thanking Dr. Jenna Cullinane Hege for sharing her insights and highlighting the importance of data storytelling in helping institutions improve student success.