Susan C. Aldridge Named New President
of University of Maryland University College
Adelphi, Md.
(November 29, 2005)—David H. Nevins, chair of the University System of
Maryland (USM) Board of Regents, announced today the appointment of Susan C.
Aldridge as president of University of Maryland University College (UMUC). Vice
Chancellor of Troy University's University
College and eCampus, Aldridge will
begin her new position February 1, 2006.
The University System of Maryland is planning a reception to
introduce Aldridge to UMUC, USM, and the State of Maryland.
USM will announce details about the event soon.
During the past year, Aldridge has served as vice chancellor
of University College
and the eCampus for Troy University
(formerly Troy State
University ) in Troy, Alabama. The university's eCampus is the nation's
second largest distance learning program at a public university. UMUC offers
the nation's largest.
As vice chancellor, Aldridge serves as chief executive
officer for Troy University's
graduate and undergraduate degree programs outside of Alabama
in 17 states, 14 countries, and 13 time zones. The campuses for which Aldridge
has responsibilities include 62 locations internationally and domestically.
Supported by a $70-million budget, the campuses serve some 20,000 students with
more than 103,000 enrollments annually.
Since 1995, Aldridge also has been an adjunct professor at Troy,
teaching master's degree courses in business, health administration, health
policy, and organizational behavior and theory.
"The USM Board of Regents believes that Dr. Aldridge is the
right person to lead University of Maryland University College," said Nevins. "Her
distinguished career spans higher education, business, and government.
Moreover, her wealth of experience and success as the CEO of an institution
that is very similar to UMUC will serve the students and the University System
of Maryland well as we position UMUC for significant growth in the years
ahead."
Aldridge joined University
College at Troy
State University
in 1996 as director of its Western Region. In 2000, she was appointed director of
the institution's international programs. Just one year later, Aldridge was
appointed vice president of Troy State's
University College,
and later, vice chancellor.
From 1973 to 1996, Aldridge's positions included serving on
the faculty of the National University of Singapore and lecturing at Hong
Kong University (teaching
management, organizational behavior, and policy analysis); division director
for the Denver Regional Council of Governments; and vice president of Aldridge
and Associates, Inc., a company that researched, designed, conducted, and
managed national and international education institutes.
"I am very pleased to welcome Susan Aldridge to the
University System of Maryland community," said USM Chancellor William E.
Kirwan. "She brings extraordinary leadership ability, tremendous commitment to
academic quality and integrity, and strong strategic and financial planning
skills to University of Maryland University College.
"I would also like to thank the search committee for its
work. Under the leadership of Donald S. Orkand, co-founder of DC Ventures and
Associates, LLC, and founder of The Orkand Corporation, the committee did an
outstanding job of reviewing candidates and identifying finalists for review by
the USM Board of Regents and me.
"In addition, we very much appreciate the excellent leadership
that UMUC Provost Nicholas Allen is providing as University
College's interim president. His
performance during this period is serving UMUC extremely well."
Aldridge has achieved many successes as a higher education
leader. For example, she conducted the due diligence work and contract
negotiations for Troy University's
international site locations. She managed locations in Japan,
Korea, Germany,
Cuba, Hong
Kong, Taiwan,
Vietnam, Thailand,
Malaysia, Ecuador,
Sri Lanka, United
Arab Emirates, and India,
as well as sites in the United States.
Aldridge also served on the board of the Alabama Governor's
Distance Learning Task Force and on the Alabama World Trade Organization Board.
This year, she was elected to the board of the International Association of
Business Disciplines.
Her many honors and awards include recognition by the State
of Colorado for "Outstanding Leadership" and the Distinguished Service Award
from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. She also is chair of the
2006 U.S.-China Forum on Distance Education and she co-chaired the 2005 U.S.
Department of Defense Task Force on Distance Learning Standards.
"I am excited about the wonderful opportunity to lead
University of Maryland University College," said Aldridge. "University
of Maryland University College is
uniquely positioned for exponential growth because of its name recognition and
its reputation as a quality higher education institution serving
non-traditional students globally. I look forward to working with this university,
dedicated to providing excellent online programs to students in Maryland,
throughout the United States,
and around the world."
Aldridge received her doctorate and master's degrees, both
in public administration, from the University
of Colorado. She received her
bachelor's degree in sociology/psychology from Colorado Women's College.
Aldridge will succeed Gerald A. Heeger who served as president
of UMUC for six years. He stepped down in August 2005 to become president of Whitney
International University,
a new international education initiative. Since August, Nicholas H. Allen, UMUC
provost, has served as interim president.
Headquartered in Adelphi, University of Maryland
University College is one of the 13 institutions comprising the University
System of Maryland. With online enrollments reaching more than 143,000 in
fiscal year 2005, UMUC is one of the world's largest virtual universities. In
addition to serving students in Maryland
and throughout the United States,
UMUC delivers academic programs to U.S.
military and their dependents in 28 countries under contracts with the U.S.
Department of Defense.
To learn more about University of Maryland University
College, visit: www.umuc.edu.
