Tom Stritikus, PhD, president of Occidental College, will be the next chair of the ACE Board of Directors.
Tom Stritikus
Stritikus was formally named today during ACE’s business meeting conducted via a webinar with ACE members, and his term will begin on Oct. 1, 2025. He succeeds
Félix V. Matos Rodríguez, PhD, chancellor of The City University of New York, and will serve as chair until September 2026.
Meanwhile, ACE’s membership elected
Anne M. Kress, PhD, president of Northern Virginia Community College, as Board vice-chair, and also elected a slate of new Board members, all of whom also will begin their terms on Oct. 1, 2025.
Anne M. Kress
Stritikus began his tenure as the 17th president of Occidental College, a nationally renowned liberal arts college in Los Angeles, on July 1, 2024, arriving there with more than three decades of higher education leadership experience, as well as an abiding commitment to values of inclusive excellence and equity.
Located in northeast Los Angeles, Occidental integrates an experiential liberal arts education with the cultural and intellectual resources of a global city. Through coursework, partnerships with local organizations, and the college’s signature programs—such as the Urban & Environmental Policy Institute, L.A. Encounters, the Kahane UN Program, and Campaign Semester—Occidental students get hands-on experience exploring our most important global issues. Anchored in the cornerstones of excellence, equity, community, and service, an Occidental education prepares graduates to be thoughtful and engaged citizens, and fosters a deeply rooted commitment to the public good.
Prior to arriving at Occidental, Stritikus served as president at Fort Lewis College, a public liberal arts college in Durango, Colorado, where he helped to reinvigorate a campus that served high percentages of first-generation students and students of color. He oversaw record increases in fundraising and more than doubled the college’s cash endowment. He also led the college as it embraced its role as a Native American-serving institution, which included engaging with Tribal Nations as partners and reckoning with the college’s complicated history as a former Native American boarding school.
His prior experience includes being a deputy director of education at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, where he developed funding plans for initiatives to improve outcomes for low-income students and youth of color nationwide. A native of Lincoln, Nebraska, Stritikus is a first-generation college graduate, the son of Greek immigrants.
“Ensuring that higher education remains strong, innovative, and a primary engine of economic and social mobility has never been more important to our nation, and never been under more sustained and misguided attacks,” said ACE President Ted Mitchell. “During such a tumultuous and challenging time, I deeply appreciate the dedication, leadership, and willingness to serve shown by Tom, Anne, and the entire ACE Board of Directors, and I want to express my utmost gratitude to Félix for all of his leadership and commitment over the past year to ACE and the entire higher education community.”
“In my role as vice-chair, I’ve had the privilege of working collaboratively with my ACE colleagues and experiencing the power of our collective voice,” said Stritikus. “At a time when colleges and universities are facing intense scrutiny, ACE advocates for higher education as a critical engine of democracy, innovation, and understanding. I’m honored to serve as the next board chair.”
Also elected and designated to the ACE Board of Directors during today’s ACE business meeting were:
Terms begin after fall Board meeting in September 2025
ELECTED OFFICERS
CHAIR
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Tom Stritikus, President, Occidental College
VICE CHAIR
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Anne M. Kress, President, Northern Virginia Community College
ELECTED MEMBERS
Term Ending September 2028
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Neeli Bendapudi, President, The Pennsylvania State University (Reappointment)
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Reginald DesRoches, President, Rice University
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Tracy Hartzler, President, Central New Mexico Community College
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Anne M. Kress, President, Northern Virginia Community College (Reappointment)
-
Anne M. Prisco, President, Holy Family University
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José Luis Cruz Rivera, President, Northern Arizona University
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Marlene Tromp, President, University of Vermont
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Gregory Washington, President, George Mason University
Term Ending September 2026
-
Gary B. Crosby, President, Saint Elizabeth University
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Philip G. Rogers, Chancellor, East Carolina University
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Lisa Marsh Ryerson, President, Southern New Hampshire University
DESIGNATED MEMBERS
Designated Associations (Term Ending September 2028)