Newsmakers
CEO on the move Tawny Dotson is now the eighth superintendent/president of California’s Mt. San Jacinto College (MSJC). She previously was president of Yuba College (California) since 2020. MSJC board president Tom Ashley said in…
Leadership
Family style: Reflections on commencement
Many readers will remember the viral story from May 2025 in which a student parent at the University at Buffalo was pursued by campus security for carrying his infant across the graduation stage. The university…
Snapshots
Photos from institutional members of the American Association of Community Colleges. San Diego College of Continuing Education was represented at the Anduril 250 NASCAR Cup Series Race at Naval Base Coronado last weekend, helping showcase skilled…
Enamait to lead AACC board of directors
John Enamait, president of North Carolina’s Stanly Community College, will become chair of the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) board of directors on July 1, succeeding Leigh Goodson, president of Tulsa Community College (Oklahoma)….
Recognizing today’s ecosystem orchestrators
Over the last couple of months, I’ve sat with presidents and system leaders from Alabama, Virginia, Illinois, California, Texas, New York, Wisconsin, Michigan and Massachusetts, just to name a few — and I’m watching something…
Pivoting to serve local workforce needs
When Andrew King applied to the MentorLinks program in 2024, he sought help adding course-based undergraduate research experiences to biology courses at Lehigh Carbon Community College (LCCC). King, the Pennsylvania college’s interim dean of science,…
Revised approach to math yields results
Something impressive is happening at California’s community colleges. In fall 2024, 58% of students taking a transfer-level math course for the first time completed that class on their first attempt — a 7 percentage-point gain in just…
Strengthening leadership
A new report from the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) outlines the redesign of its professional development offerings. “Reimagining Leadership for a New Era” is the first in a series of reports showcasing the…
Rebuilding the rules of higher ed’s opportunity ladder
For decades, the federal government has helped millions of Americans climb the opportunity ladder by financing their postsecondary education and training. But it’s paid too little attention to whether the credentials actually moved them up…
Juneteenth and the seats that are still empty
I grew up not knowing what Juneteenth was. That’s not something I say with shame. It’s something I say with honesty. It wasn’t until I became president and CEO of Phi Theta Kappa and moved…