New London, CT – Dr. Evelyn Ellis, the associate dean for Academic Support Services at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, was selected=Dr. Evelyn Ellis, the associate dean for Academic Support Services at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, was selected for this year’s American Council on Education Fellows Program.
Established in 1965, the ACE Fellows Program is one of the longest-running leadership development programs in the nation, preparing senior leaders to address issues of concern at institutions of higher learning. The program condenses years of on-the-job experience and skills development into a single semester or year.
Ellis was among 46 college and university senior faculty and administrators, and the only one from Connecticut selected for the program nationwide. Speaking of her selection Ellis said, “It has been a lifelong dream of mine to be able to serve as a senior executive at a college or university. I have no doubt that I will grow as a result.” Ellis earned a Bachelor of Science in secondary education, a Master’s degree in education at the University of El Paso, completed a Doctorate of Education at the University of Southern California, and holds a second Master’s degree from Drury University in Springfield, Mo.
During their placement, fellows observe and work with a college or university president and other senior officers at a host institution, attend decision-making meetings and focus on issues affecting higher education. Projects have included implementing a post-tenure review process, developing a teaching-learning center and recruitment and retention of faculty of color. Ellis is currently reviewing a number of possible host institutions in the Northeast.
To date, more than 300 program graduates have gone on to serve as chief executive officers of various colleges and universities across the country. “I am most appreciative that the Academy is investing in its future by choosing to invest in me,” Ellis said. “I look forward to delivering a great return on their investment.”
At the Academy she is responsible for administrative oversight of the institution’s Honors Program, Hewitt Writing and Reading Center, Academic Advising Services and a host of other faculty and student development initiatives. “As the daughter of parents who were brought up during a time when educational access was not afforded to everyone in America, and the first one in my immediate family to graduate from college, I am thrilled,” she added.