Participants

Applicants to the Executive Leadership Institute (ELI) are expected to serve in senior leadership positions in community colleges and to be qualified for a presidency by their educational and experiential backgrounds.

The typical applicant will hold an advanced degree and will have three or more years of experience as a senior-level administrator in a community college, usually reporting to the CEO at the campus or district level. ELI is designed primarily for those who have not yet served in a presidency. However, new community college CEOs and those contemplating a transition will also find ELI extremely valuable. Participants are selected from qualified applicants by a national review committee of established presidents.

ELI is an intensive experience, with session formats varying by topic and purpose. Participants should expect to fully immerse themselves in the December in-person and January virtual programming. In order to gain the largest advantage from ELI, it is recommended that participants not attempt to fulfill their job responsibilities on institute days. Family members are not encouraged to attend.

Participant Quotes

“The faculty were phenomenal. I have never had professional development like this, including graduate school. Now I am thinking more like a president; it has shifted my thinking and given me insight into sitting in the president’s chair.”

— Patrick Ryan, Schenectady Community College, ELI Class of 2023

“I loved the intentionality with which the faculty were selected. I saw myself in them, which was empowering and life changing.”

— Tiffany Boykin, Anne Arundel Community College, ELI Class of 2023

"Thank you for contributing to my learning. It's truly been rich and transformative for me. I've evolved from the little engine thinking he can to the engine knowing he can. I move forward with this experience knowing the why and centering the why in my preparation to offer myself to serve."

— Rushton W. Johnson, Pellissippi State Community College, Class of 2022