The iCollege Tour Series Discusses Community College Leadership with Dr. Russell A. Davis, President of Gloucester County College

The iCollege Tour Series Discusses Community College Leadership with Dr. Russell A. Davis, President of Gloucester County College on the Journey Begins, radio for the engaged parent and dedicated educator.

Bio

A graduate of Hampton University, Virginia (BA in English, MA in education/Counseling Psychology); Harvard University, Massachusetts (Advanced Certificate in Educational Management) with a Doctorate of Education in Higher Education (Concentration on Community College Leadership) from Morgan State University in Maryland, the former Catonsville, Maryland resident took the post as GCC’s fifth vice president of student services in June 2005. Davis was an integral member of the committee that successfully led GCC through a recent 10-year reaccreditation process from the Middle States Commission of Higher Education. “Leadership begins with the president, and when we look for a leader we look at qualifications and experience to determine if that person deserves the opportunity to lead,” said Chairman Milton W. Hinton.

The iCollege Tour Series Discusses Community College Leadership with Dr. Kenneth Atwater, President, South Mountain Community College

The iCollege Tour Series Discusses Community College Leadership with Dr. Kenneth Atwater, President, South Mountain Community College on the Journey Begins, radio for the engaged parent and dedicated educator.

Bio

Dr. Ken Atwater became President of South Mountain Community College on July 2, 2001. For the five years prior to becoming President he was Vice President for Student Services at Kellogg Community College in Battle Creek, Michigan. In all, Dr. Atwater has served in community college leadership positions for the past 25 years.

For three years prior to his position at Kellogg, Dr. Atwater was Vice President and Dean of Students at Howard Community College in Columbia, Maryland. He has also been Vice President for Student Development Services at Midlands Technical College in Columbia, South Carolina; and Dean of Students at Catonsville Community College in Catonsville, Maryland. At Jackson State Community College, in his native state of Tennessee, Dr. Atwater was Director of Counseling Services and Director of Student Activities.

Dr. Atwater earned his Ph.D. in Higher Education (with a focus on community colleges) from Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, Illinois, in 1989. He earned a Master of Science degree in Guidance and Counseling in 1978 and a Bachelor of Science degree in Speech and Theater, and also Sociology, in 1977, all from Murray State University in Murray, Kentucky. The President is a graduate of the prestigious Executive Leadership Institute of the League for Innovation in the Community College; and also is a graduate of the Institute for Leadership Effectiveness, University of Tennessee – Knoxville.

Dr. Atwater served a three-year term on the Board of Directors of the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) July 2004 – June 2007. He served on the 2005-06 Executive Committee of the AACC Board, and is currently serving on the AACC Commission on Diversity, Inclusion, and Equity.

He has served on the Greater Phoenix Black Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors since August 2001, the Valley of the Sun YMCA Board of Directors since July 2002, and the Institute for Community College Development (Cornell University) Board of Directors since August 2006. He has also served on the boards of the Southwestern Michigan Urban League, the Battle Creek Chapter of the American Red Cross, the Greater Battle Creek United Way, the American Association of Community College Commission on Research, and has been Vice Chair of the Board of the National Institute for Student Success.

eFocus Presents: Carmita Vaughan, Chief Strategy Officer for The America's Promise Alliance

Carmita Vaughan
Chief Strategy Officer

Listen to an exclusive interview with Carmita Vaughan, of America's Promise Alliance October 23, 2009 on The Journey Begins, radio for the engaged parent and dedicated educator.

Bio

Former Chief of Staff of Chicago Public Schools Office of High Schools and High School Programs, Carmita Vaughan joined America’s Promise Alliance in 2009. As Chief Strategy Officer, Vaughan leads Alliance efforts to improve the lives of disadvantaged youth. She oversees the Alliance’s Dropout Prevention Summits and the “Grad Nation” initiative, to help communities increase high school graduation rates and ensure that all students graduate high school-, college- and work-ready.

While at Chicago Public Schools (CPS), Vaughan worked closely with Arne Duncan, U.S. Secretary of Education, to develop a comprehensive strategy to increase Chicago’s graduation rate to 70 percent by 2010. Vaughan worked toward developing and implementing a systematic approach to address at-risk students, as well as those who already dropped out of school. She also managed all central high school operations and administrative services supporting 120 schools in areas including budget, human resources, data systems, and communications.

In addition to institutionalizing programs directed at Chicago’s students, Vaughan led efforts to support principals and teachers. She spearheaded an initiative to provide additional faculty support and compensation in 40 of the district’s highest-need schools through a performance-based pay initiative. This proposal led to CPS being awarded a $27.5M grant from the Department of Education – the largest competitive federal grant it had ever received.

Vaughan began her tenure with the Chicago Public Schools through the Broad Residency in Urban Education, a two-year, national program that builds leadership in urban public school districts. Prior to joining CPS, Vaughan served in global marketing, strategic planning, and engineering/operations management roles in several Fortune 500 companies, including Procter and Gamble and Danaher Corporation.

Vaughan holds a Master’s in Business Administration from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management, and received her undergraduate degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Michigan.

Ronald J. Iannotti and Jing Wang Discuss Their Research On Bullying with The Journey Begins: Radio For the Engaged Parent and Dedicated Educator

Ronald J. Iannotti, Ph.D., joined the Prevention Research Branch in August 2001, as a senior research fellow and was appointed a staff scientist in April 2005. He earned a master's degree from Hollins College and received his doctorate from the State University of New York at Buffalo. Dr. Iannotti assists the OD in a variety of administrative areas. His research interests are in the development and maintenance of health behaviors, children's management of acute and chronic illness, and the influence of families and peers on these processes.

Jing Wang, Ph.D., joined the Prevention Research Branch in November 2007 as a post-doctoral fellow. She received her Ph.D. in quantitative psychology from Bowling Green State University, Ohio. Her research focuses on the integration of advanced quantitative methods (e.g., structural equation, multi-level, and item response modeling) to the examination of psychological, social, and developmental processes, particularly within the study of prevention research.

To hear the exclusive interview with Dr. Ronald J. Iannotti and Dr. Jing Wang, log onto The Journey Begins

Educator Spotlight: Dr. Lorenzo Lamar Esters

Dr. Lorenzo Lamar Esters assumed the role of Vice President in the Office for Access and the Advancement of Public Black Universities at the Association of Public and Land-Grant Universities on June 1, 2009. As the chief minority affairs officer for the organization, whose membership includes more than 220 public, research and land-grant universities and is headquartered in Washington, DC, Dr. Esters works with leadership of public historically black colleges and universities, 1890 and 1994 Land-grant institutions, and Hispanic-serving institutions. He also provides support and leadership with the Commission on Access, Diversity and Excellence and works to promote and advance access and equity across all APLU institutions and all public higher education.

Dr. Esters formerly served as Senior Adviser to the President at Dillard University in New Orleans, LA. As a Senior Adviser, Dr. Esters’ work primarily involved evaluating the effectiveness of programs and operations, providing senior level advice and assistance to the President regarding faculty, staff and student issues and in addressing complex and sensitive issues regarding campus administration.

Prior to joining Dillard University, Dr. Esters served as Management and Program Analyst in the Office of the Assistant Secretary at the U.S. Department of Education. There he was responsible for drafting regulations, legislation and policy related to No Child Left Behind and K-12 education. He has over ten years of experience as a career federal public employee. This includes three years with the U.S. Department of Education as a Management and Program Analyst in the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Elementary and Secondary Education, two years as Deputy Division Director with the Social Security Administration’s Office of the Chief Administrative Law Judge in Falls Church, Virginia and five years as a Claims Representative in Social Security Administration District Offices.

Dr. Esters has served as adjunct professor of English at Jackson State University in Jackson, Mississippi, and at Montgomery College in Rockville, Maryland. He has also published several articles on the subject of Entrepreneurial Leadership in Higher Education and the vanishing African American male in Higher Education. Dr. Esters is currently leading an initiative at A.P.L.U. to launch a national conversation regarding the “American Male Imperative,” an initiative designed to bring attention to the low persistence and resilience rates of males in general and minority males in particular at America’s four-year institutions.

The Mississippi Delta native is a summa cum laude graduate of Rust College in Holly Springs, MS and holds a Master of Arts Degree in English from Jackson State University and Doctorate of Education in Higher Education Administration from Morgan State University in Baltimore, MD. He is a member of the Mt. Zion Baptist Church in Arlington, Virginia and is former Vice Chair of the Board of Trustees at Northern Virginia Community College, the second largest community college system in the United States. Dr. Esters is also a life member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. and was recently recognized by his alma mater as the Young Alumnus of the Year.

Educator Spotlight: Dr. George Boggs, American Association of Community College (AACC President and CEO)

Dr. George R. Boggs is President and Chief Executive Officer of the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC). From its Washington, D.C., headquarters, AACC represents over 1,100 associate degree-granting institutions and some 12 million students.

Dr. Boggs holds a bachelor's degree in chemistry from The Ohio State University, a master's degree in chemistry from the University of California at Santa Barbara, and a Ph.D. in educational administration from The University of Texas at Austin.

He has served on the Boards of Directors of the California Association of Community Colleges, the Community College League of California, the Western Association of Schools and Colleges, and the American Association of Community Colleges, serving as Board Chair in 1993/94. He served as a member of the Committee on Undergraduate Science Education of the US National Research Council, the Accrediting Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET), and several US National Science Foundation panels and committees. He has testified before both state legislative and US Congressional committees on subjects related to higher education. He is the author of more than sixty articles and chapters in professional journals and books.

Dr. Boggs has been recognized by the Public Broadcasting System with its Terry O'Banion Prize for Teaching and Learning for "triggering the most significant educational movement of the past decade." He has been honored by The University of Texas as a Distinguished Graduate. Dr. Boggs was recognized by the Chair Academy with its Paul A. Elsner International Excellence in Leadership Award and by the National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development (NISOD) with its International Leadership Award. He received the Professional of the Year Award for Motivational Leadership from the Leadership Alliance, the Harry Buttimer Distinguished Administrators Award from the Association of California Community College Administrators, the Marie Y. Martin Chief Executive Officer Award from the Association of Community College Trustees, and the Stanley A. Mahr Community Service Award from the San Marcos Chamber of Commerce. The City of Vista proclaimed January 15, 1994, as Dr. George Boggs Day in recognition of his community service. August 24, 2000, was proclaimed as Dr. George Boggs Day in San Diego County in recognition of service to education and in the cities and counties of the 51st Congressional District in recognition of educational leadership. Dr. Boggs is listed in Who's Who in America and six other Who's Who directories.

Dr. Boggs served as a faculty member, division chair, and associate dean of instruction at Butte College in California and, for fifteen years, he served as the Superintendent/President of Palomar College in California. He is currently the President and CEO of the American Association of Community Colleges.