Advisory Board
About the Board
- More than 125 members
- Represent key stakeholder groups: postsecondary institutions and providers; higher education state systems; industry and employers; business and professional associations; accrediting, quality assurance, and standards organizations; philanthropy; policy and governmental entities; research organizations; data and learning management industry; workforce boards; direct service intermediaries and advocacy organizations; military; international organizations; communications; and other organizations working on aspects of credentialing
- Provide perspectives on and advocate for incremental credentials to transform the nation’s credentialing system
Advance CTE
The George Washington University
KYLE ALBERT is an associate research professor in the Institute of Public Policy at George Washington University, where he co-chairs the Program on Skills, Credentials, and Workforce Policy. He is also an IPA Fellow in the Chief Evaluation Office (CEO) for the U.S. Department of Labor, where his evaluation portfolio covers topics related to job training and work-based learning, including apprenticeship and community colleges. He is an expert on public workforce and higher education surveys and data systems and has led several research studies on the labor market value of non-degree credentials.
J. Alssid Associates
State Higher Education Executive Officers
The Burning Glass Institute
Midwestern Higher Education Compact
Higher Education Consultant
ERICA BARREIRO is a higher education consultant. Most recently, she served as the Chief Learning & Diversity Officer at Nusenda Credit Union, from which she gained an in-depth employer perspective on organizational learning and development. She has been a leader in K-20 education for over 20 years, committed to creating more accessible, equitable, and inclusive learning and work environments. She has served as an academic dean and a Future of Work Strategist at Central New Mexico Community College, where she led the creation of several innovative degree and certificate programs and contributed to local and national efforts to build skills-based learning and work ecosystem.
Education Strategy Group
SUNY Empire State University
MEG BENKE is a professor of Adult Learning at Empire State University, and former Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs at SUNY Empire State College. Benke also served as a commissioner for the Middle States Association for Higher Education, and participated as a commissioner for the National Commission on Interstate Regulation of Distance Education which served as a foundation for the National Council for State Authorization Reciprocity Agreements (NC-SARA).
University of Texas System
KELVIN BENTLEY is the founding program manager of the Texas Credentials for the Future, an initiative within the University of Texas System designed to provide learners across the system’s eight universities with access to employer-initiated and validated micro-credential programs to help undergraduates be successful in the world of work. He has more than 22 years’ experience leading online learning initiatives as an administrator and consultant for two- and four-year colleges and universities, and K-12 and for-profit organizations. Kelvin has received various honors including Blackboard’s 2017 Catalyst Award for Inclusive Education, and his selection as a Fulbright Specialist in 2010.
WestEd
Metropolitan State University of Denver
Education Design Lab
Bragg & Associates, Inc.
Council for Adult and Experiential Learning (CAEL)
National Association of Manufacturers
Credential Engine
The Conference Board
Goodwill Industries International
Achieve Partners
RYAN CRAIG is the author of books Apprentice Nation: How the "Earn and Learn" Alternative to Higher Education Will Create a Stronger and Fairer America, and College Disrupted, A New U: Faster + Cheaper Alternatives to College. Craig is also the author of the bi-weekly Gap Letter. He is also Managing Director at Achieve Partners, which is engineering the future of learning and earning.
National Skills Coalition
Strada Education Foundation
HOLLY CUSTARD is deputy director, Institute Partnerships and Outreach at Strada Education Foundation. She has worked in K-20 education for more than 20 years, across non-profit, public, and corporate sectors. She specializes in learner-centered design, qualitative research, cross-sector stakeholder engagement, and strategic program development. Before joining Strada, Custard was Head of Academics at Pearson, leading innovations in online learning and designing new models to serve working learners. She also previously served as Associate Director of Digital Content at the University of Texas at Austin, Product and Solutions Specialist at Pearson, and Education Program Director for PBS.
Credly
LEANNE DAVIS is managing researcher, Postsecondary Success at Education Northwest. She previously served as Senior Learning Specialist at The Hope Center for College, Community, and Justice; and as Associate Director of Research and Policy at the Institute for Higher Education Policy (IHEP). Previously she served in various roles in research at IHEP, and COO/Director of Counseling at Sparks Consulting LLC. Early in her career she was a Navy CH-46 pilot. As training officer for her squadron, she worked to ensure that workplace training and certifications received would meet the requirements for ACE military credit.
Western Governors University (WGU)
SARAH DEMARK serves as vice president, Workforce Intelligence & Credential Integrity & Interim Director of the Open Skills Network at Western Governors University. She is a strong advocate for creating skills-based credentials that benefit and align both individuals and employers to improve equitable opportunity for all. While at WGU, DeMark has also served as the vice president of program development and the vice president of General Education innovation. She also serves on 1EdTech’s Board of Directors.
John N. Gardner Institute for Excellence in Undergraduate Education
Higher Learning Advocates
Competency-Based Education Network (CBEN)
North Carolina Community College System Office
Complete College America
Workcred
AARP Foundation
University of North Carolina System Office
ERIC FOTHERINGHAM is Assistant Vice President for Transfer Student Success & Partnerships at University of North Carolina System. He has held many roles at the system including working on adult learner initiatives, non-cognitive skill assessment, policy reviews, and data analysis. Prior to working in higher education work, he supported workforce development programs and international and domestic capacity-building projects.
The Institute for College Access & Success (TICAS)
Huron Consulting Group
SEAN GALLAGHER is higher education consulting director at Huron Consulting Group. He is also a part-time lecturer at Northeastern University. He previously served as Chief Strategy Officer for Northeastern University and as a business leader at research and consulting firm Eduventures.
Higher Education Consultant
SUNY Empire State University
JULIE GEDRO is Dean of the School of Business at SUNY Empire State University where she has also served as Associate Dean and Professor of Business, Management and Economics. She serves as Series Editor for Palgrave Macmillan’s Human Resource Development book series, Explorations in Workplace Stigma; and served as President of the Academy of Human Resource Development.
Aspen Institute
World Education, Inc.
American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers (AACRAO)
New Trust Lab
Salesforce
ACT’s Center for Equity in Learning
Whiteboard Advisors
ALISON GRIFFIN is a Senior Vice President with Whiteboard Advisors where she manages the social impact agency’s policy and practice work focused on the intersection of postsecondary and employment. Previously she served as a policy advisor to the Chairman of the U.S. House Committee on Education and the Workforce; policy advisor with the American Association of State Colleges and Universities; and member of the senior leadership team at Strada Education Network leading their external affairs, government relations, and national engagement activities. Alison is currently a Trustee for Colorado Mesa University, and Vice Chair of the Colorado League of Charter Schools Board of Directors.
Bladen Community College
DEANA GUIDO is the Grant Development and Contract Administrator at Bladen Community College. Previously she was the Director of Learning Resource Center at Halifax Community College. She also has served as Director of Academic Programs at North Carolina Community College System Office.
Career and Technical Education in Colorado
ED2WORK®
National Student Clearinghouse
Higher Education Consultant
Unmudl Skills-to-Jobs Marketplace
Hope Adult Public Charter School
Volta Learning Group
Student-Ready Strategies
VANESSA KEADLE is a partner and the Chief Strategy Officer at Student-Ready Strategies, a postsecondary technical assistance and consulting organization focused on institutional transformation to achieve equitable outcomes for Black, Latine, Indigenous, poverty affected and adult students. She previously served as the senior strategy director at Complete College America, coordinator of evaluation and research at the West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission, and in various student-focused institutional roles.
Community College Baccalaureate Association
Council for Adult and Experiential Learning (CAEL)
NC Community College System
Minnesota State Colleges and Universities
WICHE
National Healthcareer Association (NHA)
National Skills Coalition
Digital Badge Academy
Ascendium Education Group
ACT State Government Relations
Digital Credentials Consortium
1EdTech
Business Roundtable
Competency-Based Education Network (C-BEN)
National College Credit Recommendation Service (NCCRS)
Jobs for the Future (JFF)
George Washington Institute of Public Policy
Parchment
KEVIN MARTIN is Chief Growth Officer and member of the Executive Team at Parchment. Previously he worked at Stryker as a Commodity Manager and Aftermarket Materials; and at Calvin College as a Transfer Coordinator following roles as an Admissions Counselor/Transfer.
Mott Community College
Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges
United States Military Academy (West Point)
CHRIS MAYER is a career Army officer and Head of the Department of English & Philosophy at the United States Military Academy (West Point). He previously served as West Point’s Associate Dean for Strategy and Initiatives and is a former Teagle Assessment Scholar and Association of Professional Futurists Emerging Fellow. Chris’ membership on the Advisory Board does not reflect endorsement by the U.S. Military Academy, U.S. Army, or U.S. Department of Defense.
New America
VALUE
Competency-Based Education Network (C-BEN)
LISA MCINTYRE-HITE is Executive Vice President & Chief Operating Officer: C-BEN Solutions, at Competency-Based Education Network (C-BEN). Previously she was the Founder and Principle of Learning Ecosystem Design, LLC. She was also Vice President of Learning Innovation at Guild Education. Her research in competency-based education and learning innovation has been published by the Clayton Christensen Institute and is featured in several peer-reviewed journals.
Virginia Office of Education and Economics
Washington Student Achievement Council (WSAC)
Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta
Monthey Associates
Governor’s Office of Education and Workforce Transformation (GOEWT)
WorkingNation
Council of Graduate Schools (CGS)
NASPA
National Student Clearinghouse
Higher Learning Advocates
Higher Education Quality Council of Ontario (HEQCO)
Colorado Department of Higher Education
Inter-American Development Bank
CanCred by Learning Agents
State University of New York (SUNY) System
Colorado Department of Higher Education
University at Buffalo
Colorado Mountain College System
SmithBucklin
Walmart Foundation
BridgeValley Community and Technical College
Indiana Commission for Higher Education
CVS Pharmacy
Lumina Foundation
AdeptID
KATIE SIEVERS serves as Partner Experience Lead at AdeptID, whose talent matching models get more people into better jobs, faster. Prior to AdeptID, Katie led professional services at Pearson Workforce Skills, where she took a human-centered approach to helping organizations structure, launch, and scale skill recognition strategies and credentialing programs. She is also a Teaching Fellow at Harvard Graduate School of Education, where she focuses on systems change, emerging technologies, and entrepreneurship in education.
American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers (AACRAO)
University of Maryland Global Campus (UMGC)
American Council on Education
Higher Learning Commission (HLC)
Stanford University
Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce (CEW)
Ed Design Lab
KEVIN STUMP is vice president of impact at Ed Design Lab. He was previously vice president of Economic Mobility and Workforce Innovation at SUNY Rockland. He has also worked at Rockland Community College and JobsFirstNYC, an intermediary positioned between private philanthropy, public policy and practice to expand economic mobility to opportunity youth. This is where he co-founded Invest In Skills NY. As founding Northeast Director for Young Invincibles, he co-launched DegreesNYC. He has also served in roles in policy, research, and advocacy at the Roosevelt Institute and New York Public Interest Research Group.