Old Dominion University’s administration announced a rapid shift to an eight‑week, asynchronous format for all online undergraduate and master’s courses, provoking strong opposition from faculty who say the change was implemented without adequate consultation with faculty governance bodies. Faculty leaders argue the compressed format risks pedagogy and workload balance. Administrators argue the move is part of a multi‑year strategic plan to double online enrollment and ensure financial sustainability amid enrollment pressures; they call the change operational rather than curricular. The dispute has played out in public meetings and union activity, highlighting tensions between institutional survival strategies and shared governance norms. At the American Association of Colleges and Universities conference, presidents and peer leaders underscored the widening demands on college leaders — from campus safety and academic freedom to student success — offering lessons in communication, time management and stakeholder engagement that institutions facing rapid transformation will need to adopt.