CSU, Chico graduate with BS Business emphasis in Marketing.
Was a Resident Advisor junior and senior year, loved being part of the student journey and building community in the residence halls.
Went to college with Founder of College Scheduler, Robert Strazzarino and started with College Scheduler in November 2009.
Enjoys partnering with higher ed institutions and improving the most important transaction of the student experience - registration!
Garcia has been associated with the University for 10 years, was most recently TAMIU’s director of Recruitment and School Relations. A TAMIU graduate, he holds his BBA with a concentration in Finance and his MBA in International Business from TAMIU.
Karin Fischer is a journalist who focuses on higher education and a research associate at the Center for Studies in Higher Education at the University of California at Berkeley. She focuses on international education, including American colleges’ activities overseas, the globalization of the college experience, and study abroad. Her extensive reporting on international-student recruitment and the experience of foreign students in the United States has been collected in a special publication, Chinese Journey: Student Migrations, Family Dreams and What Happens Next. She also writes about U.S. higher education policy and the relationship between colleges and the economy. Her work has appeared in The Chronicle of Higher Education, The New York Times, EdSource, the Washington Monthly, and University World News. She publishes a weekly newsletter on global education, latitude(s).
Ms. Fischer is a recipient of the East-West Center’s Jefferson Fellowship for reporting in Asia and the International Reporting Project fellowship. Her work has been honored by the Education Writers Association, the National Press Foundation, and the Poynter Institute. She is a graduate of Smith College, in Northampton, Massachusetts.
Annabel Lawday is currently an International Portfolio Manager for International BTEC Education at Pearson. Annabel works within the team to support product development, as well as supporting our regional Pearson teams globally. The primary focus is the ongoing support to enhance and expand the BTEC international qualifications coverage, through partnerships and opportunities within employers, governments and educational centres in over 65 countries.
Prior to this role at Pearson, Annabel worked within financial services and accountancy education, optimizing client relationships and managing a team to oversee education programmes run in the UK and Europe. Annabel’s career in education begun a number of years ago in digital education companies in international teams, in roles including key account management and client focused roles.
Basirat drives relationships with universities, diploma evaluators and other government and global education partners to enhance the progression of Pearson Edexcel students from over 80 countries into higher education around the world.
Before joining Pearson, Basirat developed and enhanced international partnerships and scholarship activity within transnational education (TNE), student and staff exchange, research and work abroad and international student recruitment programmes at the University of Greenwich and King's College London.
Basirat holds an MA in Education and International Development from University College London (UCL) and is a Regional Assessor for the Chevening UK Master’s Scholarship scheme. She is an active Inclusion, Access and Success committee member of the International Association for College Admission Counseling (International ACAC).
Wade Tomlinson is currently the Stakeholder Manager for higher education institutions and ministries at Pearson Higher Education Qualifications (HEQ) division. Wade works with organisations across the globe, gaining recognition for Pearson BTEC qualifications, while securing degree pathways for BTEC Higher National learners in over 65 countries.
Prior to his current role at Pearson, Wade worked with UniQuest, an organisation that works in partnership with Higher Education institutions, optimizing student recruitment and conversion in the UK and US.
Wade started his career in education in 2012 as President of Roehampton Students’ Union. Since then he has worked in Public and Private Higher Education Institutions across multiple roles, including partnership management, outreach, international enrolment & admissions.
Mike Reilly served as the Executive Director of the ÐãÉ«Ö±²¥ (ÐãÉ«Ö±²¥) 2012 - 2021.
Prior to coming to ÐãÉ«Ö±²¥ he served as the Executive Director for the Council of Presidents, an association of the six public baccalaureate degree granting institutions in the state of Washington. He has 25 years of experience in university administration, admissions and enrollment management, including having been the Associate Vice President for Enrollment Management at both Central Washington University and Humboldt State University. He recently served on the American Council on Education Board of Directors and is currently on the American Council on Education’s Commission on Education Attainment and Innovation and the College Board’s Access and Diversity Collaborative Advisory Council. He is a frequent writer and speaker on public policy matters impacting higher education.
David L. Roy serves as the Director for Academic Relations, Competitive Admissions, and Access and Diversity in the Office of Undergraduate Admissions at The Ohio State University. In this role, he is responsible for providing strategic leadership for the application review process for domestic and international new first year applicants for Ohio State University’s Columbus campus. He also provides senior leadership for the strategic partnership between Undergraduate Admissions and Ohio State’s academic colleges. In addition, David direct efforts to increase the recruitment and enrollment of underrepresented minorities, first-generation and low-income students as well the training and development of Admissions staff specific to access and diversity best-practices.
Prior to his current role, he served as Director for the Diversity Services Office in the College of Arts and Sciences at Ohio State. In that role, he directed recruitment, orientation and advising activities for minority students as well as initiatives designed to assist with minority student retention and graduation.
David has twenty years of higher education experience in enrollment management, diversity, advising, recruitment and retention. He earned a bachelor’s degree in Political Sciences and Sociology from the University of Southwestern Louisiana, a master’s degree in African American and African Studies from The Ohio State University. He is an alum of The College Board’s Enrollment Leadership Academy.
Kristi Wold-McCormick currently serves as Assistant Vice Provost and University Registrar of the University of Colorado Boulder. In her leadership role, she focuses on student data privacy, business process improvement, academic policy, inclusion initiatives, and academic record and enrollment innovation.
Kristi served as Vice President for Records and Academic Services. She has also served on both the Program and Nominations & Elections committees, and recently chaired an ÐãÉ«Ö±²¥ committee that developed guidance on disciplinary transcript notations.
Prior to joining CU Boulder, Kristi was registrar of North Dakota State University. She also has held various positions in admissions and enrollment management. Kristi earned a bachelor’s and master’s degrees from NDSU and a Ph.D. from the University of North Dakota.
ÐãÉ«Ö±²¥ Role: Immediate Past President - Board of Directors
Interview with Kristi Wold-McCormick
Lee H. Melvin is the Vice Provost for Enrollment Management at the University at Buffalo, State University of New York. He is responsible for leading, developing, articulating and implementing an enrollment management strategy, with the primary vision of maintaining academic momentum and moving UB to higher levels of institutional distinction. Melvin oversees the offices of financial aid, admissions, registrar, marketing and communications and 1Capen Student Services Center.
Thomas C. Black’s forty-year career in higher education has included work in various administrative and registrar roles in academic and student affairs at Stanford, U Chicago, Duke, UNC Chapel Hill, and, most recently, Johns Hopkins University. Tom is currently the Chief Innovation Officer of Paradigm, Inc. Throughout his career, Tom has implemented student information systems, experimented with data standards, and developed new digital credentials that eventually became the norm within higher education. Most recently, he has worked to prototype the CLR (comprehensive learner record) with an emphasis on helping learners understand what knowledge, skills and abilities they are acquiring, and developing narratives that enable them to become successful in the marketplace. Accordingly, he's turned his attention toward increasing the exchange of learner data using national standards while ensuring only authorized access to improve learner mobility in the marketplace.
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When he is not speaking, Joel expresses his creativity as an actor, writer and comedian. He started performing professionally in 1992. In Dallas, he was co-host of The Movie Zone on UPN 21. He has appeared in dozens of commercials for numerous clients, including the Dallas Cowboys, Harrah's Casino, Mydiscountbroker.com, Time Warner Cable, Pizza Hut, McDonald's, Eagle Country Markets, and Extraco Bank. He has appeared in hundreds of corporate videos and has appeared on shows from CNBC’s The Big Idea with Donny Deutsch to the Fox Network’s Fox and Friends Weekend. His articles have been featured in The Dallas Morning News, The Houston Chronicle, The Kansas City Star, among many other mainstream media outlets.
Paul McCarty is the Communications and Bulletin Specialist for the Office of the Registrar at the University of Denver. He began his career in higher education at the University of Denver, where he was the Associate Registrar for Academic Services.
He has been involved in ÐãÉ«Ö±²¥ both nationally and regionally--previously serving on the board of directors and as newsletter editor for the Rocky Mountain Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admission Officers (RMACRAO).
Role: Associate Provost and Dean of Admission, Seattle University
James Miller is the Associate Provost & Dean of Admission at Seattle University. James has focused his career on building successful, highly efficient student-centered recruitment strategies and tactical approaches that help institutions meet their enrollment and revenue goals. He has expertise in the development and management of complex marketing plans, national recruitment strategies, enrollment data management and analysis, admissions technology, and process redesign. He brings a passion for the inclusive mission of higher education and the development of recruitment and enrollment plans that open the doors as widely as possible to those who are traditionally underrepresented in higher education.
He has worked in the admissions profession for 16 years and has served at Oregon State University, University of San Francisco, University of Puget Sound, and University of Washington Bothell. He is is a consultant for ÐãÉ«Ö±²¥ Consulting, the consulting arm for the ÐãÉ«Ö±²¥, a recognized leader in Strategic Enrollment Management (SEM) consulting.
He has served in leadership positions in state, regional and national professional organizations; he is a Past-President of the Pacific Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers (PACRAO) and the Admissions Practices Chair of the Pacific Northwest Association for College Admissions Counseling (PNACAC). James created PACRAO’s Leadership Development Institute, an award-winning leadership training program for early career high potential leaders.
James received Bachelors’ Degrees in Economics and Psychology from Oregon State University.
2025 ÐãÉ«Ö±²¥ Elections Candidate - President-Elect
Position Statement:
As a servant leader, I am honored to accept a nomination for the President-Elect position. I seek to give back to an organization that has so richly blessed me personally and professionally, to support the good work of the talented ÐãÉ«Ö±²¥ staff, and to continue the work of the Board for another three years.
I currently serve as the Vice President for Academic Systems and Completion Strategy at Ivy Tech Community College, in Indiana. My experience in higher education includes working as an admissions counselor, and as a registrar. My 23-year career covers serving at four-year private and public institutions, a graduate school/seminary, and a two-year institution. In my current role, I supervise the Office of the College Registrar, which supports the 19 campus registrars that are part of Ivy Tech’s statewide system. I feel this breadth of experience helps me understand the challenges ÐãÉ«Ö±²¥ members face at their institutions.
My diverse experience also includes serving ÐãÉ«Ö±²¥ at the national, state and regional levels. At the national level, I currently serve on the ÐãÉ«Ö±²¥ Board of Directors as the Vice President for Information Technology. While on the Board, I chaired the Governance Committee which brought eight bylaw changes that were approved at the 2025 Business Meeting. In 2024, I also served on a task force that reimagined the Technology and Transfer Summit. Additionally, I raised awareness and advocated that Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISI) be included in ÐãÉ«Ö±²¥’s work with minority serving institutions. My ÐãÉ«Ö±²¥ leadership experience encompasses serving as the Vice Chair on the Nominations and Elections Committee, Chair and Vice-Chair on the State and Regional Relations Committee, and past Chair on the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Caucus.
At the State and Regional level, most of my experience has been in Illinois ACRAO (IACRAO), where I served as President, Professional Activities Officer and as a District Chair. I was also voted as an honorary member in 2021 for my contributions to IACRAO. ÐãÉ«Ö±²¥ Past President, Tina Falkner, advised me to get involved with IACRAO as a pathway to become more involved with ÐãÉ«Ö±²¥. She was right! I believe having experience at the national and state levels gives me a unique perspective in aligning with ÐãÉ«Ö±²¥ strategic plan goals detailing ways ÐãÉ«Ö±²¥ partners with leaders at our state and regional organizations.
If elected, my goal would be to lead ÐãÉ«Ö±²¥ with empathy, humility and service. I would continue to partner with fellow Board members and the ÐãÉ«Ö±²¥ staff in the implementation of the strategic plan. Development for ÐãÉ«Ö±²¥’s next strategic plan is already underway and continuing to serve on the Board will allow for a smooth transition in goals, tactics and metrics as the strategic plan is updated and implemented.
In this important ÐãÉ«Ö±²¥ role, I would seek to support ÐãÉ«Ö±²¥ members as they navigate the many changes impacting higher education, related to federal policies, and an evolving technological landscape which includes artificial intelligence (AI), learning mobility, complex software systems and digital credentials. Our members are experiencing change on a dramatic scale and need partners to navigate these challenges.
In conclusion, it would be an honor to serve and represent ÐãÉ«Ö±²¥ as President-Elect. I believe my broad range of professional and volunteer experiences have prepared me for this role. I look forward to continuing the work of the Board, supporting our members, and leading with empathy and transparency.
Bio:
Chris’ ÐãÉ«Ö±²¥ involvement includes being a past chair of the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Caucus, past chair of the State and Regional Relations Committee, and as past vice-chair of the Nominations and Elections Committee.
with Chris on LinkedIn.
ÐãÉ«Ö±²¥ Role: Vice President for Information Technology - Board of Directors
Kristy is Director of the College Pathways Program at Governors State University. Beginning her career at Rush University Medical Center as a coordinator, Kristy is highly involved in ÐãÉ«Ö±²¥, with special emphasis on programs that call to her passions: mentorship, youth advancement, and developing future leaders.
Years of experience with program development, public speaking, recruitment and admissions, and program development in higher education have made her no stranger to challenges and new ideas. Her skills and education speaks to a plethora of experiences as a leader in and out of the higher education network.
with Kristy on LinkedIn.
Ewa (she/her/hers) began her career in education in 2003 working as a teacher, and in 2008 she started her journey in higher education as an academic administrator. She has served at institutions such as Boston University, Stanford University, and Amherst College.
Ewa is currently a doctoral candidate at Northeastern University and an Education Policy Fellow with the Institute for Educational Leadership and Rennie Center for Education Research and Policy. She is passionate about advancing access, equity, and inclusion for all members of higher education learning communities.
with Ewa on LinkedIn.
Bio
Dr. Soraira Urquiza is a first-generation college graduate and professional. In addition to her Doctorate in Educational Leadership from the University of Southern California, she earned a Master’s degree in Chicana/o Studies from CSU Northridge and a Bachelor’s in Psychology from Mount St Mary’s University. She is currently the Registrar for the California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) and was the recipient of the 2021 ÐãÉ«Ö±²¥ Emerging Leader Award. She is also the current Chair of the Latinx Caucus and President of PACRAO.
Request Dr. Kimberley Williams as a speaker
Associate Vice Provost for Student Success and Retention, The George Washington University
AboutDr. Kimberley Williams currently serves as the Associate Vice Provost for Student Success and Retention at the George Washington University (GW). In addition, she is the assistant director of ÐãÉ«Ö±²¥’s SEM Endorsement Program (EP). She has three decades of experience in higher education.
Dr. Williams has a proven track record of consistent enrollment success and is widely viewed as one of the top enrollment professionals in the country. Her background includes extensive experience in building targeted student outreach, readiness, and support programs that have assisted her in enhancing student diversity, community engagement, and retention rates at several institutions. In addition, Dr. Williams has led efforts in developing CRM systems, pre-college, and summer bridge programs, and early alert networks, which strongly align with GW's student success goals and aspirations.
Prior to joining GW, for nearly a decade, Dr. Williams served as the Vice President for Enrollment Management (VPEM) at two public, regional universities. She has also held leadership roles in student enrollment and support at Northern Illinois University, the University of Michigan-Flint, and Old Dominion University.
While at Northeastern Illinois University, as VPEM, Dr. Williams oversaw the matriculation of the inaugural Hope Chicago first-year class and implemented a case management approach to advising the new scholar-cohort program. In addition, the student engagement model featured the development of individualized student success plans and an automated student referral system to align student needs with the appropriate campus support units.
During Dr. Williams's tenure at the University of Mary Washington as VPEM, she helped establish new partnerships with several community-based organizations, including the Latino Student Fund (MD), Access College Foundation (VA), and the Partnership for the Future (VA). She also implemented a set of campus-wide committees and student engagement plans to improve diversity and student persistence levels. These efforts resulted in the percentage of students of color at UMW rising from 23 percent in 2014 to 30 percent in 2021, and the overall first-to-second-year student retention rate increasing by 4.8 percent. In addition, UMW enrolled its largest in history and saw a significant increase in its incoming first-year academic profile.
In addition to the aforementioned strategic enrollment management successes, Dr. Williams led enrollment efforts at the University of Michigan- Flint. Under her leadership, UM-Flint realized a 29 percent increase in new first-year enrollment (2005-2011), and a 200 percent increase in international student enrollment as noted in a 2010 titled “UM-Flint keeps rank as state's fastest growing university.”
Dr. Williams is the author of the 2021 book "History of American Higher Education A to Z: A Primer for Enrollment Managers." She also has several recent articles and publications focusing on student success and enrollment management. Recent presentations include "Closing Equity Gaps in Enrollment – A Four-Pronged Approach" (2021), "SEM and Retention; The Perfect Pair" (2018), and "We Check More Than One Racial Category... Are You Ready for Us?" (2016). In 2023, Dr. Williams completed her Ed.D. from Regent University (VA). Her dissertation research examined employment engagement and succession planning in the context of retaining enrollment middle managers in the American "Big Quit," "Great Reshuffle, and/or "Great Resignation" era. In addition, she holds an Ed.S. degree in Higher Education Administration, a master's degree in Education Administration, and a bachelor's degree in English, all from Old Dominion University. She also holds a postmaster's certificate in leadership from the University of Michigan's Center for the Education of Women.
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American Higher Education in the Year 1925: Through the Lens of Dean Alida P. Banks
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