Abstract
This Chronicle report draws on demographic trends, surveys, front-line observations, and an expanding array of Gen Z books and experts to introduce the new generation to campus leaders. Details are still emerging, but Gen Z — shaped by the Great Recession and the reign of the smartphone and social media — marks a break from even the recent past. Today’s students are more skeptical and money conscious, interested in an education they can apply and focused on the value of a degree. Technology is indispensable to them but not always a net positive, and they may need more in the way of personal development than their predecessors did.