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Leadership in Education

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Managing Director of Ed-Prep Consulting (June 2018 – present)

I am currently the Managing Director of ED-PREP Consulting, an independent educational consulting firm that provides services to individual students and educational institutions. The company is located in Columbia (MO) but has clients in the US and abroad.  It focuses on delivering quality educational services directly to individual students as well as organizations as follows:

  • High School Students: We provide educational services in college readiness, the college application process, educational and career pathway planning.
  • College Students: We provide educational services in the development of effective study habits and other strategies for success in college, selection of majors/minors, and career pathway planning.
  • Organizations (High Schools, Colleges & Non-Profits): We provide consulting services in program/curriculum development, strategic planning and goal setting, and assessment and preparation for accreditation.

Dean of the Missouri Academy (February 2004 – May 2018)

I was dean of the Missouri Academy of Science, Mathematics and Computing (Missouri Academy) at Northwest Missouri State University, Maryville, MO.  In that role, I was responsible for overseeing all operations of the Missouri Academy.  The Missouri Academy was a two-year, residential, early-college program for academically high-performing high school students.  It was located on the campus of Northwest Missouri State University.  High school students selected to enroll in this program would have completed 10th grade from their traditional high schools.  Thus, the Missouri Academy program replaced the junior and senior years of traditional high school.  The curriculum was rigorous and consisted of all college coursework taught by professors at Northwest Missouri State University.  Missouri Academy students sat in the same classrooms side-by-side with traditional university students; and professors had the same high expectations for these students as they did of traditional university students.  Thus, all courses taken by Missouri Academy students were:

  • Taught on the campus of Northwest Missouri State University
  • Taught by regular faculty members of Northwest Missouri State University
  • Taken in competition with degree candidates at Northwest Missouri State University
  • Offered as regular part of the Northwest Missouri State University academic curriculum

High school students who successfully completed this program received an Associate of Science (AS) degree, as well as a high school diploma.  It was an opportunity for exceptional students to live and study in a community of peers.  The Missouri Academy was highly selective and only the best and brightest students are admitted to undertake what was arguably one of the most difficult high school curricula in the Midwest.

My oversight of this program extended to the 15 full-time staff members responsible for student development, academic programs, curriculum development, student recruitment and counseling ($2.3 million annual budget).  The Missouri Academy has been exemplary and used as a benchmark (for best practices) by other similar specialized programs and schools.  Under my leadership for 14+ years, the retention rates, graduation rates, student/parent satisfaction, GPA attainment, post-admission ACT/SAT scores, 4-year college matriculation and graduation rates (and other measures), the Missouri Academy has been very successful.

Founding Director of the Honors Program (May 2005 – April 2008)

I was the Founding Director of the Honors Program at Northwest Missouri State University. My overall responsibility was to develop the new Honors Program at Northwest Missouri State University.  I created a collaborative atmosphere to produce positive results with faculty across the university, department chairs and deans, students, and the admissions and registrar’s offices.  My specific accomplishments include:

  • Assembling an Honors Program Committee and outlining the responsibilities of this committee
  • Designing the Honors Program curriculum – with the help of the Honors Program Committee
  • Developing an advertising plan to inform the university community and prospective students about the Honors Program
  • Establishing standards for selection of students into the Honors Program
  • Developing assessments instruments to measure progress in the Honors Program
  • Recruiting, mentoring and advising all Honors students every semester
  • Selection of faculty to teach Honors Program courses
  • Effectively managing the $50,000 annual budget

 

Senior Associate for Academic Affairs and Planning (August 1998 – January 2004)

In my capacity as Senior Associate for Academic Affairs and Planning at the Missouri Department of Higher Education (MDHE), I had primary responsibility for the review/approval of new academic programs, the review of existing academic programs, and maintenance of an accurate database of academic programs offered at Missouri’s colleges and universities.  The following are descriptions of my key areas of responsibility:

  • Program Approval: The MDHE, on behalf of the Coordinating Board for Higher Education (CBHE), discharged one of its statutory responsibilities through systematic review of proposals for new academic programs, off-site delivery of existing programs, and for changes in existing programs at Missouri’s higher education institutions. This policy for the review of academic program proposals was an essential component for achieving the programmatic initiatives contained in the Coordinating Board’s Blueprint for Missouri Higher Education in Missouri regarding institutional mission enhancements, technical education, funding for results and a telecommunications-based delivery system.  I effectively reviewed and acted on all academic proposals from Missouri’s public higher education institutions.
  • Program Review (or review of existing academic programs): I was responsible for data collection, organization, review, analyses of existing academic programs at Missouri’s higher education institutions and providing summary reports to the Associate Commissioner and the Commissioner. The CBHE (and thus MDHE) discharged its statutory responsibility of data collection through the systematic review of existing academic programs.  Public four-year institutions were required to conduct annual campus-based reviews of academic programs.  To comply with this requirement, public four-year institutions reviewed twenty percent of their degree programs annually.
  • Program Inventory Maintenance and Analyses: I was responsible for maintaining an accurate inventory of academic programs and the analyses of these statewide programs.  The MDHE collected data on academic program delivery from public, private, and proprietary postsecondary institutions in Missouri.  These data made up the state program inventory.  The inventory was posted on the MDHE website and provided access to information about Missouri’s higher education activities and opportunities.

 

Director of the Statewide Federally Funded Title II Program (August 1998 – January 2004)

I was the Director of a federally funded Dwight D. Eisenhower Professional Development Program for the state of Missouri.  This was a competitive program, with grants awarded via a merit-review system, and provided funds to accredited public and independent institutions of higher education and to nonprofit organizations of demonstrated effectiveness (in Missouri) for projects that provided intensive professional development workshops and programs for K-12 teachers in mathematics and science.  I managed, directed and coordinated the SAHE (state agencies for higher education) funds allotted to the state of Missouri by the US Department of Education.  I awarded approximately $1.2 million a year to eligible participants from Missouri’s colleges, universities, and local school districts.  In keeping with Missouri’s consolidated state plan for the use of federal education funds, the MDHE (in collaboration with the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE)) made a strategic decision to use the SAHE grant funds to provide professional development for K-12 teachers in the core academic subjects of mathematics and science.

  

Commissioner’s Associate for Life Sciences (March 2001 – January 2004)

I was the Commissioner’s Associate for Life Sciences Initiatives at the Missouri Department of Higher Education (MDHE).  In this capacity, I worked closely with the Commissioner of Higher Education in providing information and coordinating the state’s life sciences initiatives.  In 1998, the State of Missouri identified life sciences (biomedical/biotechnology fields) as one of three high-demand occupational categories in the state; the other two were computer-related fields and advanced manufacturing.  These targeted disciplinary areas were characterized as pivotal for the future of the state.