Christopher Gause, executive director of the Center for Academic Success at Alfred University, was a participant at the 2026 College Student Personnel Association of New York State (CSPA-NYS) Conference, held Oct. 25-27 in Buffalo.
Gause, who earned an MBA from Alfred University in 2023, is a doctoral student at SUNY Brockport pursuing a Doctor of Education degree in Educational Leadership. He was one of several higher education professionals to present book reviews at the CSPA-NYS Conference.
On Monday, Oct. 26, Gause presented a review of the book “Radical Candor” by Kim Scott, a former Google and Apple University executive. Gause’s review was one of six on books that relate to student affairs and leadership. “Radical Candor,” a New York Times bestseller first published in 2017, is a business leadership guide that teaches managers how to be simultaneously clear and empathetic.
The book “provides a framework for student affair professionals to deliver constructive feedback that will lead to further student development,” Gause said of his review of the book. “I think this book is deeply applicable to student affair professionals and highly recommend staff members read it especially if it’s their first time supervising student or professional staff. “
In addition to Gause, faculty at SUNY Brockport and the University of Rochester specializing in educational leadership presented book reviews. They included two of Gause’s faculty in the Higher Education & Educational Leadership program at Brockport—Joshua Fegley, instructor; and Brittany Profit-Rheinwald, assistant professor and program chair.
Gause has a master’s degree in Student Affairs Higher Education from Indiana University of Pennsylvania and a bachelor’s degree from psychology from York College. He has been with Alfred University for more than eight years, serving two years as an instructor in the College Student Development Graduate Program before joining the Center for Academic Success in 2021. There, he served as associate director (2021-22) and director (2022-26) before being appointed executive director in August. Gause has also served as Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) coordinator at Alfred University since November 2025.
