Council’s first female president led series of innovative initiatives; ACE to launch national search for new leader
ACE
President Molly Corbett Broad, who became ACE’s 12th president in 2008
and is the first woman to lead the organization since its founding in
1918, announced today that she will step down on Oct. 31, 2017.
During her tenure at ACE, Broad spearheaded a wide range of
initiatives aimed at advancing the Council’s historic mission of
leadership and advocacy, improving access to postsecondary education,
and enabling colleges and universities to anticipate and respond in
innovative ways to an evolving higher education landscape.
Those accomplishments included modernizing the GED®
testing program; creating more flexible pathways to college degrees and
credentials for nontraditional learners; reaffirming the educational
benefits of a diverse student body; expanding the higher education
leadership pipeline; and examining how effective instruction can
increase student success.
Under her leadership, ACE undertook a number of efforts to address
key higher education policy topics, including accreditation, federal
regulation and the Moving the Needle: Advancing Women in Higher
Education leadership campaign to achieve gender parity in the academy.
Broad recently oversaw an ACE Roundtable that provided guidance to
college and university presidents and chancellors on ensuring that
intercollegiate athletics programs are part of a culture of integrity
that stresses the primacy of the academic mission.
“It has been a privilege to work with colleagues across the higher
education community and from every type of institution on so many vital
and complex issues during this pivotal and challenging period for
American colleges and universities,” Broad said. “As ACE heads toward
its centennial year, the Council’s role as the major coordinating body
for all of higher education and responsibility to help campus leaders
see around corners and understand how to meet constantly evolving
challenges and capture corresponding opportunities has never been more
important.”
“Molly's leadership has had a profound impact on higher education,”
said John J. DeGioia, chair of the ACE Board of Directors and president
of Georgetown University (DC). “Her unwavering commitment to excellence
has animated all of our work, strengthening our efforts to improve
access and provide the very best education to students across our
country.”
DeGioia added that ACE will soon launch a national search to identify candidates to serve as the Council’s 13th president.
Broad came to ACE from the University of North Carolina (UNC), where
she served as president from 1997-2006, leading UNC through a period of
unprecedented enrollment growth. Broad held a number of administrative
and executive positions at several universities prior to her tenure at
UNC.
At the California State University system, she served as senior vice
chancellor for administration and finance from 1992 to 1993, and as
executive vice chancellor and chief operating officer from 1993 until
her election as UNC president. Earlier in her career, Broad served as
the chief executive officer for Arizona's three-campus university system
(1985–92) and in a succession of administrative posts at Syracuse
University (NY) (1971–85).
Broad earned a General Motors Scholarship to Syracuse University,
where she graduated Phi Beta Kappa with a baccalaureate degree in
economics from the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs. She
holds a master's degree in the field from The Ohio State University.