Top 10 Most-Read Articles in 2025

By Autumn Walden, Editor, AACRAO Connect, Content Strategy Manager, AACRAO

What captured the attention of our readers in 2025? Our Connect top 10 most-read list reflects the practical guidance our community turned to most. This ranking combines newsletter clicks and web pageviews to highlight what resonated. Because our Ask the FERPA Professors series consistently tops the list when it appears in an issue, I’ve only included the most-read FERPA article of 2025. Consider this a snapshot of shared priorities and a reciprocal high-five between our contributors and readers whose insights and curiosity continue to inform, challenge, and support our professional community. I'm always looking for new contributors to add their voice to the conversations. Write for AACRAO Connect and make 2026 your year to publish for the first time or continue your writing streak.

Top 10 Most-Read Connect Articles in 2025

1. Redefining the Registrar: From Record Keeper to Architect of Learning Pathways: In this Live from #SEM2025 article, Molly McDermott-Fallon of the University of Cincinnati outlined a vision of the “Registrar 2.0,” a professional who is agile, data-driven, and ready to enable change rather than merely respond to it.
2. Ask the FERPA Professors (February 4, 2025): The professors answer questions regarding whether an institution can refuse to provide a student's information to the authorized parent.
3. The Ins and Outs: Modernizing Ideas About the Registrar’s Office: Whitney Merinar of West Liberty University proposes some "Ins and Outs" to update outdated ideas about the role of the registrar’s office and reinforce new concepts.
4. Distance Education Regulation Ruling and Implications: On July 24, 2024, the U.S. Department of Education (the Department) proposed a rule in the Federal Register that would impact distance education programs and some federal educational activities. This article discusses the concerns with the proposed rule, the subsequent final rule, and its implications.
5. Sweet Recognition: Appreciating Employees Before They’re Gone: Tara Kent, Ph.D., of CUNY - Brooklyn College, explains why we must recognize and appreciate the value of our employees before it’s too late.
6.  Registrar: Not a Cash Register, and Other Misconceptions: Michelle Gruber of Butler University shares four common misconceptions that the general public may have about the registrar to help clear things up if someone mistakes you or your role for that of a cashier.
7. Revolutionizing Credit Mobility with AI and a Powerful Network: The call for a pilot group to pioneer the technology to move learners’ knowledge and skills data across systems at scale.
8. Live from #AACRAO2025: Registrars on the Front Lines of Admission: In this Live from #AACRAO2025 article, Andrew Marx, Registrar and Director of Academic Advising, Tufts University, explored how to clarify boundaries, reduce repeat office visits, and strengthen hand-offs through early engagement, policy alignment, and smarter support strategies.
9.  Learning Mobility: A New Kind of Blue Book For a New Kind of Learner: AACRAO released a new e-book on Learning Mobility for rewiring how we recognize learning. Dr. Wendy Kilgore of AACRAO and Dr. Carolyn Gentle-Genitty of Butler University set the tone: learner-centered change isn’t optional—it’s overdue.
10.  Sometimes You Need to Retreat to Advance: Tammy Aagard of AACRAO Consulting offers critical factors and key tips for planning your next leadership or office retreat.