Built for Executive Judgment and Development Beyond Instruction
The ATIXA Capstone Experience (ACE) brings senior leaders together in a concentrated, high-impact environment focused on executive judgment, not foundational instruction. Participants bring their most complex and nuanced civil rights challenges and engage in facilitated peer dialogue, strategic self-reflection, and individualized consultation with peers who operate at comparable levels of authority and responsibility.
Who Participates in the Capstone Experience
ACE is designed for senior institutional leaders whose roles require discretion, judgment, and strategic decision-making beyond traditional training environments, including:
- General Counsel
- Presidents and Chancellors
- Superintendents
- Senior executive-level administrators
Participants typically seek a peer-driven, application-focused experience aligned with their leadership level.
Capstone Structure & Cohort Model
ACE cohorts are delivered in person at select ATIXA in-person events and are intentionally limited to a small, curated group of approximately 15 participants. Each cohort participates in a four-hour in-person executive intensive, followed by a dedicated virtual follow-up session to support real-world application.
This structure ensures depth of engagement, confidentiality, and meaningful peer exchange.
Executive Application & Outcomes
A defining feature of ACE is its emphasis on individualized application within a peer-informed environment. Participants work through institution-specific situations with senior partners in ways that generate shared learning and actionable insights for the full cohort.
Participants leave with:
- Clear, defensible next steps
- Refined executive judgment frameworks
- Strategic clarity they can immediately apply within their institutions
Denver 2026 Cohort Focus: The Current Civil Rights Landscape
The 2026 ACE cohort, held in conjunction with the ATIXA Summer Symposium in Denver, CO, will examine the evolving civil rights landscape and its implications for institutional operations, governance, compliance strategy, and campus or district culture. The cohort will be guided by Brett A. Sokolow, J.D., and W. Scott Lewis, J.D., who bring decades of combined practical and advisory experience. Brett and Scott will provide strategic insight, facilitate advanced peer dialogue, and expand learning in real time as participants work through complex scenarios, competing priorities, and critical decision points.
Denver 2026 Cohort Agenda
Executive Preparation Before the Capstone
Prior to the in-person intensive, cohort participants complete structured professional preparation designed to ensure immediate, peer-level engagement. This is not instructional learning. Preparation aligns participants around shared expectations and enables deeper, more strategic discussion during the in-person experience.
In-Person Executive Intensive (4 Hours)
Hour 1: Framing the Executive Landscape
- Shared context and expectations
- Executive lens on the civil rights landscape
- Distinguishing policy mechanics from executive judgment
- Confidentiality and peer norms
Hour 2: Peer-Level Issue Exploration
- Facilitated discussion of pre-submitted themes
- Examination of institutional tensions and risk tradeoffs
- Shared learning from individual challenges
Hour 3: Applied Executive Consultation
- Focused consultation on select scenarios
- Senior partner guidance on decision logic and leadership posture
- Transferable strategies for the cohort
Hour 4: Action Planning
- Synthesis of insights and strategies
- Individual articulation of next steps
- Implementation considerations and risk management
- Closing executive perspective
Continued Engagement After the Intensive
Several weeks after the in-person intensive, cohort participants reconvene for a one-hour virtual executive session with senior partners. This follow-up focuses on real-world implementation, lessons learned, emerging challenges, and refinement of strategies based on lived experience.
ATIXA Capstone Experience FAQs
ACE is designed for senior leaders with executive authority, such as General Counsel, Presidents, Chancellors, Superintendents, and system-level administrators, who already possess deep civil rights knowledge and are responsible for institutional decision-making, governance, and risk.
This is not a traditional training or certification. ACE assumes advanced expertise and focuses on executive judgment, strategic application, and peer-level dialogue. There is no foundational instruction; participants bring their own complex issues and work through them with senior partners and peers.
The value lies in access and application: direct engagement with senior TNG partners, a small executive cohort, individualized consultation within a peer-informed setting, and actionable outcomes participants can immediately implement upon returning to their institutions.
Not exactly, but the ACE is intentionally structured to ensure balanced participation and shared learning. Individual cases are used to generate insight and strategy for the full group, creating an executive peer environment rather than a spectator experience.
Participants take part in a one-hour virtual follow-up session with the senior partners and cohort to discuss implementation, outcomes, and emerging challenges. This ongoing engagement reinforces learning and supports real-world application beyond the event.
- $1,295 for members
- $1,495 for non-members
The registration fee covers participation in the full cohort experience, including facilitated sessions, expert guidance, peer discussion, and all cohort-related materials. Travel, lodging, meals, and any other expenses related to attending the in-person event are not included in the registration fee. All information related to the in-person event such as dates, location, venue details, recommended hotels, and other logistical considerations is provided on the event page for each specific cohort.