- On September 13, I spoke via telephone with North Carolina Community College System President Peter Hans to get a status on Hurricane Florence preparations. Later in the day, I also spoke with Central Piedmont Community College President Kandi Deitemeyer to check on her status related to the impending hurricane. (DC)
- From September 9 – 11, I provided several presentations to participants in the AACC John E. Roueche – Future Leaders Institute and the Future Presidents Institute (DC).
- On September 7, West Virginia University at Parkersburg President Cristopher Gilmer stopped by the AACC offices. Later in the day, we received a visit from Polk State College President Angela Falconetti (DC)
- On September 6, I hosted a meeting with Association of Public and Land-grant Colleges CEO Peter McPherson to discuss a new APLU project being funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Also in attendance for the meeting were Senior Vice Presidents Mary Heiss, Martha Parham, and Program Associate Kevin Christian (DC).
- On August 28, I was delighted to meet with Scott Stump, assistant secretary for career, technical and adult education and assistant secretary for planning, evaluation and policy development, and Dr. Michael Wooten, acting assistant secretary and deputy assistant secretary to learn more about the priorities for the U.S. Department of Education. Also in the attendance at the meeting were AACC staff members Dr. Angel Royal, Mary Heiss, Wayne Wheeler, and Kevin Christian. Earlier in the day, I met with ACE President and CEO Dr. Ted Mitchell and other Six members to provide an update on the AACC office relocation. (DC)
- On August 15, I was delighted to tape a video for the U.S. Department of Labor in recognition of the upcoming Labor Day Holiday celebration. (DC)
- On August 14, I was pleased to meet with representatives from Apple to discuss ways that our two organizations might partner. (DC)
- From August 7 to 10, I participated in the Annual AACC Board of Directors’ retreat and the first meeting of the fiscal year. (DC)
- On August 2, I attended a recognition event hosted by the Community Disciples of Princeton, in my hometown of Princeton, Kentucky, to celebrate my accomplishments. In addition to family and friends from the local community, I was pleased to be joined by presidents of Hopkinsville and Owensboro Community Colleges and the vice president for Madisonville Community College.
- On July 31, I was pleased to meet with U.S. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross (Washington, DC).
- On July 24, I traveled to Traverse City, Michigan, for the Michigan Community College Association’s (MCCA) Summer Conference where I provided presentations to the Council of Presidents and the MCCA Leadership Academy, and I received a special recognition award at the closing luncheon.
- On July 21-24, 2018, I traveled to Dana Point, California, to attend the Presidents Academy Summer Institute.
- At the invitation of Ivanka Trump and Secretary Wilbur Ross Jr., on July 18, 2018, I attended a dinner hosted in Washington, DC by US Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross, Jr. and his wife, Hilary Geary. The event was held in advance of President Trump’s signing of the Executive Order on the President’s National Council for the American Worker.
- I was in Detroit, Michigan, June 28-29 for the Urban Summit, hosted by Wayne County Community College District.
- On June 14, I participated in our annual Executive Committees Transition phone call between our board’s outgoing and incoming chairs and executive committee members.
Dr. Angel Royal and I traveled to the Community College of Baltimore County – Essex Campus to meet with incoming Board Chair Dr. Sandra Kurtinitis to discuss the upcoming board year. And, later the same day, I provided a welcome to attendees of the AACC Developmental Education Redesign Institute in Baltimore. - On June 13, I spoke with graduate students in the National American University Community College Leadership Program via webinar.
- On May 16–17, I attended the Community College Study for Student Engagement’s National Advisory Board Meeting in Austin, TX.
- I attended a breakfast meeting with Dawn Sweeney, president and CEO of the National Restaurant Association, on May 9 to discuss ways that our two organizations can work together.
- On May 7, I attended a breakfast meeting with National League of Nursing CEO Dr. Beverly Malone to discuss several issues related to nursing and nursing program accreditation.
- April 28–May 1, I wrapped up my participation at the 98th Annual Convention.
- I provided greetings to Education Policy Fellowship Program students from Alabama and Mississippi visiting DC on April 9.
- On April 4, I provided greetings at the closing meeting of the Appalachian Regional Commission for its Industry Informed Infrastructure (I3) Project (DC).
- On April 3, I attended meetings of the Washington Higher Education Secretariat and The Six. (DC)
- On Friday, March 30, I had a breakfast meeting with the National League of Nursing President and CEO Beverly Malone (DC).
- On March 28, I participated in a planning call for a session with other members of the College Promise Campaign, which will take place at the AACC Annual Convention (DC).
- On March 26, I moderated a presidents’ panel at the 12th Annual Black, Brown and College Bound Conference hosted by Hillsborough Community College (FL).
- On March 17, I participated in the NACUBO meeting and provided a speech on the key economic challenges for community colleges (DC)
- On March 14, I attended a meeting of the President’s Task Force on Apprenticeship Expansion (DC)
- On March 13, I provided greetings to the Texas Congressional Delegation (DC)
- I greeted an international delegation from Georgia, brought to the AACC office by the State Department’s IVLP program on March 7 (DC)
- On March 6, I participated in the monthly meetings of the Washington Higher Education Secretariat and The Six (DC)
- On February 12, I participated in a College Promise convening hosted by Civic Nation (DC).
- I participated in the National Legislative Summit from February 11–14 (DC).
- On February 6 I attended a meeting of the Washington Higher Education Secretariat. Later in the day, I participated in a conference call of the President’s Task Force on Apprenticeship Expansion (DC).
- From January 30 to February 1, I attended the AACC Workforce Development Institute in New Orleans, Louisiana.
- On January 29, I attended a luncheon meeting of The Six to welcome new AASCU President Millie Garcia, and later I traveled to the Rayburn House Office Building to participate in a joint interview with Congresswoman Virginia Foxx (DC).
- On January 23, I participated in a panel discussion with Drs. Judy Miner and Sandy Shugart at the 10th Community College Conference on Legal Issues in Orlando, Florida.
- On January 19, I was joined by AACC Chief of Staff Angel Royal, Senior Vice President David Baime and Associate Vice President Jim Hermes for a meeting with ACE President Ted Mitchell. (DC)
- On January 16, I met with staff from the Australian Embassy to discuss the work that they are doing with apprenticeships. (DC)
- On January 10, I participated in a Skype conversation with President of the Saudi Arabia Community Colleges Dr. Waleed Al-Numay to discuss possible collaborative efforts between our two associations. (DC)
I was pleased to welcome NAFSA Executive Director and CEO Dr. Esther Brimmer to the AACC office to discuss ways that our two organizations might work more closely together. (DC) - On January 4, I participated in the first meeting of the Education and Credentialing subcommittee, which is a subcommittee of the President’s Task Force on Apprenticeship Expansion.
- On December 15, I attended the White House Christmas party, and the retirement celebration for American Association of State Colleges and Universities President and CEO Muriel Howard.
- On December 7, in Philadelphia, I provided the closing keynote address to the Middle States Commission on Higher Education Annual Conference.
- On December 6, I joined members of the New Jersey Council of Presidents for their meeting in Philadelphia. I was presented with the New Jersey Spirit Award.
- On December 4 and 5, I provided presentations to the John E. Roueche Future Leaders Institute participants in Washington, DC.
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On November 29, I met with Pierpont Community & Technical College President Dr. Johnny Moore and Vice President Stephen Leach to receive an update on the work that the college is doing (DC).
- November 15-17 – AACC held its Fall Meeting.
- November 13 was the first meeting of the President’s Task Force on Apprenticeship Expansion.
- November 12-13, I participated in the AACC-AASA meeting on college readiness in Washington, DC.
- November 7 – I attended meetings of the Washington Higher Education Secretariat and The Six (DC)
- November 6 – Dr. Angel Royal and I met with Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) President Sue Cunningham and Director of the Community College Center of Advancement Marc Westenburg to discuss ways that CASE can more fully support community colleges (DC)
- I met with business and industry leaders from Northrup Grumman, IBM, and Lockheed Martin on October 30. (Washington, DC)
- On October 27, members of the AACC Executive Leadership Team and I participated in a breakfast meeting with new SUNY Chancellor Kristina Johnson and members of her team. (Washington, DC)
- On October 26, members of the AACC Executive Leadership Team and I welcomed AAC&U President Lynn Pasquerella and Greenfield Community College President Bob Pura to our offices to discuss partnership opportunities. (Washington, DC)
- On October 25, I attended the College Promise Board Meeting. (Washington, DC)
- I traveled to Baltimore, Maryland, on October 16 to provide a keynote presentation to participants of the NCBAA Carolyn Grubbs Williams Leadership Institute, and the Thomas Lakin Institute for Mentored Leadership.
- On October 13, I traveled to Cleveland, Ohio, to provide a keynote presentation to the National Council of Student Development’s Walter G. Bumphus Leadership Institute.
- On October 12, I participated in the first conference call of the Executive Committee for the America’s College Promise Campaign.
- On October 10, I provided a presentation to the National Alliance for Concurrent Enrollment Partnerships’ conference in Washington, DC.
- I spoke at an AACC-hosted congressional briefing on Capitol Hill on October 5.
- On September 21, I was pleased to welcome Snead State Community College President Robert Exley and National Junior College Athletic Association CEO/Executive Director Christopher Parker to the AACC offices. (Washington, DC)
- I attended a dinner at the residence of the Swiss Ambassador Dr. Martin Dahinden on September 19 to meet with experts on Swiss vocational education. (Washington, DC)
- On September 15, Dr. Angel Royal and I traveled to Chicago to meet with City Colleges of Chicago Chancellor Juan Salgado.
- On September 7, I met with Ellucian’s Acting President Kevin Boyce and Associate Vice President Marcia Daniel to get an update on the company’s priorities. Ellucian has been a longtime supporter of the Association, and is currently a Platinum Circle Partner in our corporate program. (DC)
- I participated in a conference call with members of The Six on August 31 to discuss a unified responsive to supporting colleges and universities impacted by Hurricane Harvey. (DC)
- On August 24, I was pleased to co-host a meeting with Excelencia in Education with members of the Washington Higher Education Secretariat to discuss ways that colleges and universities are serving Latino students.
- Monday, August 21, I was pleased to host SUNY Senior Vice Chancellor Johanna Duncan-Poitier to the AACC offices for a meeting.
- On August 2, I attended the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses Advisory Council meeting in Baltimore, Maryland.
- On July 26, members of the AACC leadership team and I hosted doctoral students from the University of Mary Hardin Baylor at the association’s office.
- From July 22 to 25, I attended the annual Presidents Academy Summer Institute meeting in New York City.
- On July 18, I attended a meeting with Rep. Brett Guthrie at the Rayburn Office building.
- On July 12, I participated in an interview on Guided Pathways at the Charles A. Dana Center at the University of Texas at Austin.
- I presented at AACC’s John E. Roueche Future Leaders Institute and the Future Presidents Institute on June 25 and 26 in Washington, DC.
- On June 14, I was pleased to attend a reception on Capitol Hill for the Community College Innovation Challenge finalist teams.
- I attended AACC’s Advocates in Action meeting in Washington, DC, June 12-13.
- On June 7, I provided a keynote address as a part of the Dubois Lecture Series to Old Dominion University doctoral students. (DC)
- On June 1, I delivered a pre-recorded message to the attendees of the Florida Council of Presidents Meeting (St. Augustine, FL)
- On May 25, I was pleased to deliver the commencement address at Prince George’s Community College (Largo, MD)
- On May 12, I delivered the commencement address to the graduates of Labette Community College (Kansas).
- I also joined Board Chair Dan Phelan in attending the CCSSE Advisory Board meeting on May 10-11. CCSSE continues to do an excellent job of chronicling student engagement in the nation’s community colleges (Austin, TX).
- On May 5, I was pleased to deliver the commencement address to Hillsborough Community College’s class of 2017. (Tampa, FL)
- On May 2, I attended a meeting of the Secretariat and The Six. (Washington, DC)
- On April 26, AACC, along with ACCT, was delighted to host Los Angeles Community College District Chancellor Francisco Rodriguez and members of his board to discuss ways that we could work more closely together. (Washington, DC)
- I will be at the AACC Annual Convention, April 22-25, in New Orleans, Louisiana.
- On March 24, I met with ACCT President and CEO Noah Brown to discuss collaboration on several leadership initiatives. (DC)
- I was pleased to attend the announcement of the Aspen Prize winner on March 14 in Washington, DC. Of note, Odessa and San Jacinto Colleges, led by two AACC board members were identified as Rising Stars.
- On March 13, I attended a meeting of the search committee charged with identifying the next president of the American Council on Education (DC).
- On March 9, I traveled to my alma mater, Murray State University, to give a Presidential Lecture on, “We Have a Dream, Are we Living it?” (Murray, KY)
- I was pleased on March 8 to welcome to the AACC Office, new president Johnnie Moore, Pierpont Community & Technical College for a visit. (Washington, DC)
- On March 7, I attended a meeting of the Washington Higher Education Secretariat, which received a presentation to Civitas CEO Mark Milliron (Washington, DC)
- On March 3, the AACC staff and I welcomed doctoral students from the University of Maryland University College to the AACC offices. (Washington, DC)
- From February 13–16, I attended the National Legislative Summit. I also met with new presidents Kandi Deitemeyer and Ann Rondeau during their trips to DC.
- In DC on Friday, February 10, I addressed the National Alliance of Community and Technical Colleges conference via Skype.
- In DC, on February 8, Phi Theta Kappa President and CEO Dr. Lynn Tincher-Ladner visited the AACC offices to provide me with an update on the new PTK strategic plan.
- In DC, on February 6, I attended a meeting of The Business Roundtable regarding the results from their Talent Survey.
- In DC, on February 1, at the invitation of Dr. Jill Biden I joined her for a meeting to discuss the new Biden Foundation and how she might continue to support community colleges.
- January 25-28, I’m at AACC’s Workforce Development Institute in Newport Beach, California.
- On January 23, I met with representatives from Drexel University to discuss partnership opportunities.
- On January 13, I attended an education listening session with President-elect Trump’s Transition Team (DC).
- On January 12, I was joined by Chief of Staff Angel Royal in convening a meeting of our facilitators to discuss AACC’s leadership activities for the coming year. (DC)
- On January 11, AACC hosted staff from APLU to discuss math pathways (DC).
- I was pleased to join AACC Senior Vice President David Baime and members of his team on January 10 for a webinar with association members to discuss President-elect Trump’s transition.
