HANCEVILLE, Ala. — Today, the Aspen Institute College Excellence Program (Aspen) announced that Dr. Vicki Karolewics, President, at Wallace State Community College in Hanceville, Ala., is one of 25 innovative leaders selected from across the country to participate in the second cohort of the Aspen Presidents Fellowship, sponsored by JPMorgan Chase. The fellows will engage in a unique year-long professional development experience that will help them refine and enact a reform agenda to help more of their students succeed both during and after college.
“Community colleges educate millions of diverse students every year who are relying on them to deliver the education and credentials they need for a fulfilling life and career,” said Josh Wyner, executive director of the College Excellence Program. “I am delighted that these 25 accomplished presidents have committed to strengthening their institutions’ strategies to ensure that more students achieve those aims.”
Through the year-long program, fellows will work with highly accomplished community college presidents, Aspen leaders, and each other to analyze their college’s outcomes and develop concrete plans inspired by field-leading practices. They will engage in a curriculum that will include exemplars from the field, data reports on available good jobs and student outcomes in completion and transfer, and qualitative reports about how well their current practices are aligned to what research reveals has led other colleges to high and equitable levels of student success.
This second cohort of Aspen Presidents Fellows reflects our country’s diverse talent: 52 percent are women and 44 percent are people of color. They join a network of 375 fellowship alumni, 176 of whom are community college presidents today. Aspen connects and supports this growing network of community college reform leaders with opportunities for targeted professional development, research briefings, and convenings at national conferences.
“It is quite an honor to have been selected to join this innovative group of leaders who are serious about strengthening the post-completion success of our graduates throughout our nation,” Dr. Karolewics said. “As a 2024 Aspen Finalist, Wallace State continually strives to make life better for all of our students.”
The Presidents Fellowship is made possible with philanthropic support from JPMorgan Chase through the firm’s New Skills at Work initiative, which aims to prepare young people for the future of work and meet the growing demand for skilled workers, and JPMorgan Chase’s $30 billion commitment to advancing racial equity and driving an inclusive economy.
