TCC Leader Selected as 2017-2018 Aspen Presidential Fellow

Tulsa Community College West Campus Provost and Associate Vice President for Institutional Effectiveness Kevin David, Ph.D., has been awarded the Aspen Presidential Fellowship for Community College Excellence. David is one of only 40 college leaders selected nationwide for this highly selective leadership program aimed at developing outstanding leaders capable of transforming student success at community colleges across the U.S.

The Aspen Presidential Fellowship is part of the Aspen Institute, an educational and policy studies organization based in Washington, DC. TCC President Leigh B. Goodson, Ph.D., was named an Aspen Presidential Fellow for the inaugural class in 2016.

“This is a wonderful accomplishment for Dr. David to have been selected for this elite fellowship and valuable for TCC as we continue our focus on student success,” Goodson said. “The Aspen Institute, known for sharing ideas and helping organizations grow, allows leaders to gain a deep understanding of what it takes to move a community toward greater student and employment outcomes.”

David and the 39 other Aspen Presidential Fellows will embark on a year-long fellowship in July 2017. Delivered in collaboration with the Stanford Educational Leadership Initiative and top community college leaders, the program focuses on a new vision of leadership and aims to guide new and aspiring community college presidents to dramatically change student outcomes in four areas: learning, completion while in community college and of bachelor’s degrees after transfer, employment and earnings after graduation, and equitable access and success for underrepresented minority and low-income students.

According to the American Association of Community Colleges, 365 presidents left their posts over the past year. This staggering rate of turnover is happening at the same time that increasing numbers of students—including growing numbers of minority, low-income, and first-generation to college students—are flocking to community colleges to earn degrees that lead to good jobs.

The 2017-2018 Aspen Presidential Fellows hail from 24 states and 38 community colleges of varying sizes. The Aspen Presidential Fellowship for Community College Excellence is funded by the Carnegie Corporation of New York, Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Foundation, College Futures Foundation, ECMC Foundation, Greater Texas Foundation, the Joyce Foundation, and the Kresge Foundation.