National Association of System Heads (NASH)

NASH runs the Refugee Resettlement Initiative (RRI), a partnership with the Biden administration U.S. Department of State and universities that seeks to resettle Afghan migrants in 14 different states. ⁴ NASH is also a member of the U.S. Department of State’s Welcome Corps on Campus initiative, a private sponsorship program for refugee resettlement on college campuses in the United States. ^{5 4}

NASH received a $1,200,000 grant from the left-of-center Lumina Foundation in 2017. ⁶

History and Leadership

The National Association of System Heads (NASH) was founded in 1979. ⁷

As of November 2023, Nancy Zimpher is NASH’s interim executive director. Zimpher is the co-founder of StriveTogether and has chaired the board of the Association of Public Land Grant Universities (APLU) and was a board member of the left-of-center American Council on Education (ACE). She has held several chancellor-level jobs at universities across the United States. ⁸ Jessica Todtman is NASH’s deputy director and chief operating officer. ⁹

Activities and Funding

The National Association of System Heads (NASH) is a left-of-center association of chief executives and heads of public university systems in the United States. ¹ NASH is rooted in the critical race theory-influenced concept of equity ² and serves as a forum for members to exchange ideas regarding public education and aims to bring members together to work through the concept of “systemness,” which it defines as coordinated efforts across education systems. ⁷

NASH works to end what it identifies as “equity gaps” in education systems. ¹⁰ It focuses its efforts on minority and low-income students across educational systems and expects its members to condemn views that NASH considers racist, antisemitic, Islamophobic, hateful, and marginalizing. ^{11 7}

NASH members include multiple four-year public university systems and several two-year institutions. As of November 2023, NASH has 48 member systems in 34 states. ³ In 2021, NASH spent $1,029,517 on its program activities. ¹²

NASH Equity Action Framework

National Association of System Heads has adopted a definition for the critical race theory-influenced concept of equity that is in line with the left-of-center Lumina Foundation’s Equity Imperative. Its Equity Action Framework is in line with the feminist National Action Committee on the Status of Women’s definition of anti-racism, which calls for the identification and elimination of racism by changing systems, organizational structures, policies, and practices and attitudes so that power is distributed equitably. ^{11 13}

In its Equity Action Framework, NASH states that its constituent campuses should be in line with the far-left concept of anti-racism and measure the concept of equity along a student success continuum. The equity action framework is in line with nine categories: public commitment; leadership; data; policy; curriculum and co-curriculum; student success interventions and treatment; faculty and staff hiring, retention, promotion, and rewards; professional development; and community engagement. ¹⁴

The NASH Equity Framework is inspired by the work of the Center for Urban Education, American Association of Colleges and Universities, Excelencia in Education, Lumina Foundation, Aspen Institute College Excellence Program and the Community College Research Center at Columbia University, the New England Resource Center for Higher Education, and its member systems. ¹⁴

In 2022, NASH was a part of a group that won a $10,000,000 grant from the Biden administration National Science Foundation (NSF) to support its Re-Imagining STEM Equity with Underrepresented-Minorities in Postdoc Pathways (RISE UPP) through the NSF Includes Alliance. NASH has said this program embodies its Equity Action Framework. ¹⁵

Refugee Activism

As of October 2021, National Association of System Heads runs the Refugee Resettlement Initiative (RRI), which is a coalition between the Biden administration U.S. Department of State and universities to resettle Afghan arrivals in 14 different states. NASH has worked to increase the number of welcoming systems for refugee arrivals and the number of campuses participating in the initiative. ⁴

RRI was started in 2021 as a part of Operation Allies Welcome and was presented as NASH’s Afghan Action Plan at the White House University and College Roundtable on December 7, 2021. ¹⁶ NASH runs a catalyst fund for the program and partners with Every Campus a Refuge to host refugee families in on-campus housing at participating institutions. In 2022, the initiative received a $230,000 from the World Education Services Mariam Assefa Fund. ¹⁷

RRI partners include Accelerator for America, American Immigration Council, Association of Public and Land-grant Universities, Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, Church World Services, Cities for Action, Community Sponsorship Hub, Every Campus a Refuge, Institute of International Education, International Rescue Committee, liberal donor George Soros’s Open Society Foundations, Open Society University Network, Presidents’ Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration, Scholars at Risk, Shapiro Foundation, Universities In Exile, Welcome.US, Welcoming America, and World Education Services. ¹⁸

NASH is also a member of the U.S. Department of State’s Welcome Corps on Campus initiative, a private sponsorship program for refugee resettlement on college campuses in the United States, ⁵ and a partner of Welcoming America in its efforts to expand refugee resettlement efforts across the United States. ¹⁹

Funding

The National Association of System Heads (NASH) receives funding from contributions, grants, and program service revenue. In 2021, NASH reported revenue of $1,626,586 and expenses of $1,105,929. In 2020, the organization reported revenue of $408,041 and expenses of $425,970. ²⁰

In 2022, NASH received $200,000 from Ascendium Philanthropy for a program to support the critical race theory-influenced concept of equity in postsecondary education. ²¹

The left-of-center Lumina Foundation gave NASH grants of $130,000 in 2022 and $1,200,000 in 2017. ⁶