Opening Day 2026 Looks to the Future

Employees focus on being future-ready at the annual kickoff to the new academic year

A new academic year. The new gymnasium floor. New Clark employees joining the college community. The annual Opening Day celebration, held on September 14 in the O’Connell Sports Center, opened a new chapter for Clark College as staff and faculty began looking to the future. 

Before the ceremony began, employees connected over coffee and pastries, thanks to Clark’s partners at IQ Credit Union. Some lined up for new headshots. Others stopped by the strategic planning table to contribute to the college’s SWOT analysis. And everyone was greeted by Oswald — both the real Oswald and a waving, inflated version.  

It was a familiar Opening Day ritual: colleagues reconnecting and new faces joining the college community as we all looked forward to the new academic year stretching out ahead. 

Associated Students of Clark College (ASCC) President Andrea Gonzalez opened the ceremony with energy and enthusiasm for the year ahead, introducing this year’s ASCC and Activity Programming Board (APB) students. 

Board of Trustees Chair Marilee Scarbrough followed with a letter to Clark employees, encouraging them to continue changing lives every day, even as higher education itself undergoes significant change. 

“I know some of you are excited about AI and some of you are terrified about it,” she said. “However, this dichotomy is where the opportunity for creativity and innovation exists. Our challenge as a college is to prepare learners not simply to succeed in the world as it exists today, but to question it, adapt to it, and have the knowledge, courage, and imagination to shape what comes next.” 

When Dr. Edwards took the stage, she returned to the idea of looking ahead and delivered a powerful message about being future-ready as we set our compass forward. 

“To be future-ready is not about predicting the future but about preparing to respond effectively to change and uncertainty,” she said. “That is the opportunity before us ... to shape what comes next for Clark College. We're here to help create a future where our students, our college, and our community can thrive.”

Continuing the Future-Forward Conversation

Pictured: Keynote speaker Todd McLees

Keynote speaker Todd McLees discussed one of the biggest forces reshaping the future: Artificial Intelligence. 

He spoke about the growing role of AI and the importance of developing healthy habits around technology. Rather than focusing solely on how to make AI more powerful or how to write better prompts, he encouraged employees to consider a more fundamental question: how do we leverage AI while prioritizing human intelligence and perspective? 

“I’m standing here not as an AI advocate, but as an advocate for humans augmenting themselves with AI,” he said. 

Todd emphasized the importance of investing in both digital and human intelligence and using AI responsibly. The goal, he suggested, is not simply to determine what AI can do, but to make deliberate decisions about what is worth doing, where human judgment is needed, and where people should spend their time and effort. 

While being future-ready may not mean knowing exactly what comes next, Opening Day showed that Clark College is willing to ask the right questions as we adapt to the world around us — together. 

Learn More About Opening Day

Read about this year’s employee award recipients, and see more photos from Opening Day on Clark's flickr. 

Photos: Clark College/Jenny Shadley 

Story by Malena Goerl, Staff Writer, Communications and Marketing