Clarissa Cota Among the 2021-22 Aspen Rising Presidents Fellows

The College Excellence Program is proud to introduce the 2021-2022 Aspen Rising Presidents Fellows, who were selected through a rigorous process that considered their abilities to take strategic risks, lead strong teams, cultivate partnerships, commitment to equity and focus on results-oriented improvements in student access and success.

Heather Bigard

Lake-Sumter State College
Leesburg, Florida

Cedric Bradley

Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College
Perkinston, Mississippi 

Helen Brewer

College of the Mainland
Texas City, TX 

Levy Brown

Vance-Granville Community College
Henderson, North Carolina 

Tracie Clark

Central Piedmont Community College
Charlotte, North Carolina 

Cory Clasemann

Ivy Tech Community College
Indianapolis, Indiana

Bill Comey

College of Southern Maryland
La Plata, Maryland 

Kate Connor

Harry S Truman College
Chicago, Illinois

Clarissa Cota

College of Southern Nevada
Las Vegas, Nevada

Aarti Dhupelia

National Louis University
Chicago, Illinois

Denise Douglas

Lorain County Community College
Elyria, Ohio

Eric Dunker

Arapahoe Community College
Littleton, Colorado

Jennifer Eccles

The Minnesota State HealthForce Center of Excellence, Winona State University
Winona, Minnesota

Iris Freemon

Dallas College
Dallas, Texas

Yoshiko Harden

Seattle Central College
Seattle, Washington

Tiffany Hunter

Clark State College
Springfield, Ohio

Kimberly Hurns

Washtenaw Community College
Ann Arbor, Michigan

Tina King

Southwestern College
Chula Vista, California

Pamela Lau

Parkland College
Champaign, Illinois

Aisha Lowe

California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office
Sacramento, California

Ositadinma Maduko

Minnesota State Community and Technical College
Fergus Falls, Minnesota

Uppinder Mehan

West Kentucky Community and Technical College
Paducah, Kentucky 

Lamata Mitchell

Pima Community College District
Tucson, Arizona

Mike Muñoz

Long Beach City College
Long Beach, California

Lizette Navarette

California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office
Sacramento, California

Shawnda Navarro Floyd

Dallas College
Dallas, Texas

Sanjay Rai

Montgomery College
Rockville, Maryland

Kristen Raney

Saint Paul College
Saint Paul, Minnesota

Jessica Robinson

Cuyamaca College
El Cajon, California

Arlene Rodríguez

Middlesex Community College
Middlesex County, Massachusetts

Kathryn Rogalski

Northeast Wisconsin Technical College
Niagara, Wisconsin

Ryan Ross

Colorado Community College System
Denver, Colorado 

Jean Runyon

Front Range Community College
Westminster, Colorado

Terricita Sass

Reynolds Community College
Richmond, Virginia

Michelle Schutt

College of Southern Idaho
Twin Falls, Idaho

Edgar Soto

Pima Community College Desert Vista Campus
Tucson, Arizona

Diane Stiles

Lake Area Technical College
Watertown, South Dakota

George Timmons

Columbia-Greene Community College
Hudson, New York

Monica Trent

Achieving the Dream
Silver Spring, Maryland

Van Wigginton

San Jacinto College
Houston, Texas

Source: Aspen Institute