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Stanford, Aspen Institute collaborate to help community college leaders excel

Michael Baston, vice president for student affairs and associate provost at LaGuardia Community College in New York, is one of 40 aspiring leaders selected for the Aspen Presidential Fellowship. (Photo courtesy of LaGuardia Community College)
Michael Baston, vice president for student affairs and associate provost at LaGuardia Community College in New York, is one of 40 aspiring leaders selected for the Aspen Presidential Fellowship. (Photo courtesy of LaGuardia Community College)

Stanford, Aspen Institute collaborate to help community college leaders excel

Stanford faculty will provide training and expertise in yearlong program.

Stanford University is partnering with the Aspen Institute, an educational and policy studies organization, on a new fellowship program to develop exceptional community college leaders committed to student success.

The Aspen Presidential Fellowship for Community College Excellence will provide 40 recently appointed or aspiring community college presidents with training and expertise to help them drive meaningful change.

The fellows will attend two residential sessions at Stanford during the yearlong program learning from faculty with appointments in the Graduate School of Business and the Graduate School of Education. The Stanford Educational Leadership Initiative (SELI) is working with the Aspen Institute to create curriculum that helps fellows lead with impact, manage complex change and partner for collective action.

By partnering with Stanford, Aspen expands its network of faculty to include breakthrough ideas and practices from other sectors. Among the faculty participating in the opening session in July are Anthony Antonio, Geoffrey Cohen, Tom Ehrlich, Frank Flynn, Jeff Pfeffer and Baba Shiv.

Aspen announced the 40 fellows, hailing from 17 states and 30 community colleges, in a press release on April 7.

“This class of remarkable Fellows will expand the talent pipeline to the presidency at a time of dramatic presidential turnover and urgent need to improve student outcomes,” Josh Wyner, Executive Director of the Aspen Institute’s College Excellence Program, said in the release. “These individuals are deeply committed to making a difference– they are eager to take bold action to help more students, especially those facing the greatest odds, earn credentials that reflect rigorous learning and lead to well-paying jobs.”

Stanford Professor Eric Bettinger, faculty director of SELI, said it is urgently important to direct development opportunities to leaders of community colleges, which enroll 7 million students, more than 40 percent of all U.S. undergraduates.

"We know what makes exceptional community college presidents," Bettinger said. "We are excited to move that research into a place of practice to engage and challenge and develop these aspiring leaders."

To read more about the Aspen Presidential Fellowship for Community College Excellence, click here.

To read more about the Stanford Educational Leadership Initiative, click here.


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