How UND Built a Data Foundation for AI and Student Success Across the Life Cycle

Every institution wants to make better decisions with data. The challenge is that most data still lives in disconnected systems. At the University of North Dakota (UND), Associate VP & CIO Madhavi Marasinghe has led a technology strategy that brings those systems together so the institution can make student success decisions from a shared foundation. In this session, Madhavi will share how UND connected data across enrollment, advising, and student success to create a single source of truth for the institution. You'll hear how that work changed day-to-day decision-making: leaders have better information to guide investments, faculty and staff can see the same student picture, and the institution can measure which initiatives are improving outcomes. That foundation has powered campus-wide change—including a redesigned advising model where embedded advisors use real-time data to deliver coordinated support, an approach already contributing to measurable gains in retention. UND has used predictive AI for years to help advisors and leaders make faster, better-informed decisions—and with its data foundation in place, the institution is preparing to bring agentic AI into the work, keeping people at the center. With enrollment hitting an all-time high in fall 2025 (15,844 students) and retention gains taking hold, UND's story offers practical ideas for connecting fragmented systems, building institutional buy-in, and creating a data foundation ready for what comes next.