Thank you to all those who participated and tuned into City Colleges of Chicago’s first-ever Learning Agenda Symposium: Building Towards Equity in Higher Education.
Videos from the symposium can be viewed below:
Opening Session
In Conversation with CCC and the U.S. Dept. of Education
Supporting Early Momentum for CCC Students
Remarks by UChicago’s Juan de Pablo
Lessons from English Language Learners
Achieving Workforce Relevance
Holistic Supports for Community College Students
Bringing Research Findings to Scale: OMD Expansion
Closing Remarks by UChicago Inclusive Economy Lab’s Carmelo Barbaro
9:00 a.m. Registration
9:30 a.m. Opening Session
10:00 a.m. In Conversation
- Participants:
- US Undersecretary of Education James Kvaal
- Chancellor Juan Salgado
11:00 a.m. SESSION: Supporting Early Momentum for CCC Students
- Research shows that early academic momentum, including taking and passing key gateway courses during the first year of college, is associated with higher rates of degree completion. Yet more than two-thirds of community college students are required to take at least one developmental education course before enrolling in introductory math and English, and many never complete these courses. To explain this, some point to inadequate academic preparation at the secondary level, while others focus on course placement policies that limit direct access to college-level course work. Our country’s history of racial and economic segregation, coupled with unequal funding of secondary and post-secondary education, mean that both barriers disproportionately impact Black and Latinx students and students from low-income households, contributing to a degree divide. This panel will draw on mixed-methods data collected with CCC on how community colleges can better support early academic momentum and increase degree attainment among an increasingly Black and Latinx population.
- Moderator: Lara Pruitt, The Kinship Foundation
- Panelists:
- Provost Mark Potter, City Colleges of Chicago
- Kafi Moragne-Patterson, Senior Director of College and Career Success, UChicago Inclusive Economy Lab
- Lori Ellens Manuel, Associate Professor, Communications Department, Olive-Harvey College
11:50 a.m. Remarks
- Juan de Pablo, University of Chicago Executive Vice President for Science, Innovation, National Laboratories and Global Initiatives
12:00 p.m. Lunch
12:25 p.m. SESSION: Lessons from English Language Learners
- The Community College Research Center at Columbia University and City Colleges of Chicago’s adult education department partnered to better understand and meet the needs of English language learners. This panel will feature students who informed the research insights.
- Moderator: Luis Narvaez, Associate Vice Chancellor, Adult Education
- Panelists:
- Nikki Edgecombe, Senior Researcher, Community College Research Center
- City Colleges of Chicago students
1:15 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. SESSION: Achieving Workforce Relevance
- The American Institutes for Research (AIR) and City Colleges will discuss their efforts to promote quality, relevance and workforce alignment through City Colleges’ Centers of Excellence in high-demand industry areas.
- Moderator: Stacia Edwards, Deputy Provost, City Colleges of Chicago
- Panelists:
- Elizabeth Zachry Rutschow, Managing Researcher, American Institutes for Research
- Roy Walker, Vice President, Academic and Student Affairs, Malcolm X College
- David Jaeger, Business Practices & Project Consultant, Zurich Insurance
2:00 p.m. – 2:45 p.m. SESSION: Holistic Supports for Community College Students: A Randomized Controlled Trial of One Million Degrees
- The Inclusive Economy Lab’s recent study of the One Million Degrees programs shows that participating in a holistic support program can greatly increase college enrollment, persistence, and degree attainment for students who apply to the program before they arrive on campus. This session will provide an opportunity for attendees to hear from students, researchers, and service providers. The session will also explore how to leverage lessons and implement pilots across the country.
- Moderator: Marianne Bertrand, Faculty Director, University of Chicago Inclusive Economy Lab
- Panelists:
- Aneesh Sohoni, Chief Executive Officer, One Million Degrees
- Kelly Hallberg, Scientific Director, UChicago Inclusive Economy Lab
- Veronica Herrero, Chief of Staff and Strategy, City Colleges of Chicago
2:45 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. SESSION: Bringing Research Findings to Scale: OMD Expansion
- Based on the findings from the Randomized Controlled Trial, City Colleges has decided to expand and deepen its partnership with One Million Degrees by offering students an opt out offer to participate in the program. This session will discuss the $20+ million expansion of the program over the next four years.
- Moderator: Lisa Castillo Richmond, Executive Director, Partnership for College Completion
- Panelists:
- Kimberly Hollingsworth, President, Olive-Harvey College
- PuraCarina Gonzalez, Director of Innovation and Strategic Initiatives, One Million Degrees
- Marvin Slaughter, Portfolio Manager, UChicago Inclusive Economy Lab
- OMD Scholar
3:30 p.m. – 3:45 p.m. Closing Remarks
- Carmelo Barbaro, Executive Director, University of Chicago Inclusive Economy Lab
3:45 p.m. Event Concludes/Networking
Five years ago, City Colleges of Chicago, under the leadership of Chancellor Juan Salgado, launched the district’s first-ever learning agenda. Through this effort, City Colleges made a commitment to using data to drive continuous improvement and to building deep research-practice partnerships with several outside research organizations, including the UChicago Inclusive Economy Lab, the UChicago Consortium on School Research, American Institutes for Research, and the Community College Research Center at Columbia University. These partnerships have begun to pay dividends, informing everything from how the district supports early academic momentum to the provision of holistic wrap-around supports for student success, including the scaling up of City Colleges relationship with student support organization One Million Degrees. This event is designed to highlight those lessons, explore potential solutions and best practices, and inspire innovative approaches to supporting students in postsecondary spaces.
This one-day symposium provides attendees with an opportunity to get to know some of the innovative work happening within the CCC system and highlight how researchers can support building strong educational and research partnerships across the country.
The Learning Agenda work has been funded in part by an Anonymous Foundation.
Read About the Speakers and Panelists
Beth Swanson, CEO, A Better Chicago, and Vice Chair, City Colleges of Chicago Board of Trustees
Opening Session; In Conversation
Beth Swanson, CEO, A Better Chicago, and Vice Chair, City Colleges of Chicago Board of Trustees
Elizabeth (Beth) Swanson is the CEO of A Better Chicago. In this role, she leads the organization’s work to change how Chicago fights poverty by investing in organizations and leaders that are creating opportunity for youth. Upon taking the helm at the venture philanthropy nonprofit in May 2019, Beth expanded the team, inspired new major donors to invest in A Better Chicago’s work, and launched the development of the organization’s updated strategic direction.
Prior to joining A Better Chicago, Beth was vice president of strategy and programs at the Joyce Foundation. At Joyce, she helped guide an annual grant portfolio of $50 million, providing strategic direction to all programs and working on foundation-wide innovation initiatives. She also directed the Special Opportunities Fund and the Education & Economic Mobility Program at the foundation.
Before her position at Joyce, Beth served as deputy for education in the administration of Mayor Rahm Emanuel, working collaboratively with education and community leaders to define the city’s education policy agenda from birth through college. She served as the Mayor’s point person in expanding early learning opportunities, achieving a full school day, bringing quality school options to families and launching the city’s Summer of Learning initiative. Beth also worked closely with Chicago’s business community to ensure that City Colleges of Chicago, a network of seven community colleges, helped students learn skills relevant to the local job market.
Beth had previously served as executive director of the Pritzker Traubert Family Foundation and worked for Chicago Public Schools with CEO Arne Duncan, serving as director of the Office of Extended Learning Opportunities and then leading the District’s Office of Management and Budget.
Beth is currently vice chair of the City Colleges Board of Trustees, board chair for The Partnership for College Completion, and was appointed to the Illinois P-20 Council. In 2014, she founded Thrive Chicago, a collective impact initiative working to align efforts by service providers, city agencies, and funders to help children succeed from cradle to career—and serves on the organization’s board. Additionally, Beth was the first and only female board chair for City Year Chicago (2009-2011).
Beth was a Leadership Greater Chicago Fellow in 2006, and Crain’s Chicago Business named her to its list of 40 Under 40 in 2013. She holds a bachelor’s degree in English and American Studies from Amherst College and a master’s in public policy from the University of Chicago. Beth, her husband, and their three children live on Chicago’s North Side.
Katherine Baicker, Dean, University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policy
Opening Session
Katherine Baicker, Dean, University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policy
Katherine Baicker, a leading scholar in the economic analysis of health policy, commenced as Dean and the Emmett Dedmon Professor at the University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policy on August 15, 2017.
Baicker’s research focuses on the effectiveness of public and private health insurance, including the effect of reforms on the distribution and quality of care. Her large-scale research projects include the Oregon Health Insurance Experiment, a randomized evaluation of the effects of Medicaid coverage. Her research has been published in journals such as the New England Journal of Medicine, Science, Health Affairs, JAMA, and the Quarterly Journal of Economics.
Baicker is an elected member of the National Academy of Medicine (IOM), the National Academy of Social Insurance, the Council on Foreign Relations, and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. She holds appointments as a research associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research and as an affiliate of the Abdul Latif Poverty Action Lab. She serves on the Congressional Budget Office’s Panel of Health Advisers; on the Advisory Board of the National Institute for Health Care Management; as a Trustee of the Mayo Clinic, NORC, and the Chicago Council on Global Affairs; and on the Board of Directors of Eli Lilly.
Before coming to the University of Chicago, Baicker was the C. Boyden Gray Professor of Health Economics in the Department of Health Policy and Management at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. She has served as Chair of the Massachusetts Group Insurance Commission; Chair of the Board of Directors of AcademyHealth; Commissioner on the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission; and a nonresident senior fellow of the Brookings Institution. From 2005-2007, she served as a Senate-confirmed Member of the President’s Council of Economic Advisers, where she played a leading role in the development of health policy.
Baicker earned her Bachelor of Arts in economics from Yale and her PhD in economics from Harvard.
Juan Salgado, Chancellor, City Colleges of Chicago
Opening Session; In Conversation
Juan Salgado
Chancellor Juan Salgado has focused his career on improving education and economic opportunities for residents in low-income communities.
From 2001 to 2017, he served as CEO of Instituto del Progreso Latino, where he worked to empower residents of Chicago’s Southwest Side through education, citizenship, and skill-building programs that led to sustainable employment and economic stability.
As Chancellor of City Colleges of Chicago, he oversees Chicago’s community college system, serving more than 50,000 students across seven colleges, 75 percent of whom are Black and Latinx students.
Under his leadership, City Colleges of Chicago has seen an increase in student graduation rates to the highest level on record, an unprecedented systems-level partnership with the Chicago Public Schools, the launch of Fresh Start, a first-ever debt forgiveness program, the completion of two new major state-of-the-art facilities, a re-energizing of fundraising for student supports, and campus-specific plans focused on equity in student outcomes, among other efforts.
Chancellor Salgado is a community college graduate himself, earning an associate degree from Moraine Valley Community College prior to earning a bachelor’s degree from Illinois Wesleyan University and a master’s degree in Urban Planning from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Chancellor Salgado has been nationally recognized for his work, including being named a 2015 MacArthur Fellow. Among his civic commitments, he serves as a board member of the Obama Foundation and a Class C Director for the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago.
Mark Potter, Provost and Chief Academic Officer, City Colleges of Chicago
Opening Session; Supporting Early Momentum for CCC Students
Mark Potter, Provost and Chief Academic Officer, City Colleges of Chicago
Dr. Mark Potter is Provost and Chief Academic Officer at City Colleges of Chicago. In service to the seven City Colleges, he leads efforts to advance student success and quality academic experiences in both credit programs and Adult Education.
Dr. Potter began his career as a history professor at the University of Wyoming, and prior to his current position, he was Associate Vice President for Undergraduate Studies at Metropolitan State University of Denver. He has a successful record of leading teams to research, design, and implement innovative programs for engaged learning, student success, and retention.
Dr. Potter is driven by the educational mission of expanding opportunity to traditionally under-represented populations. His devotion as an academic leader is grounded in a commitment to the open-access sector where the work of providing a pathway to educational attainment has the greatest potential to impact lives and communities. In advancing the mission of City Colleges of Chicago, Dr. Potter is able to focus his leadership on pathways to and through college so that all of Chicago’s residents can benefit from inclusive economic growth.
James Kvaal, Under Secretary of Education, U.S. Department of Education
In Conversation
James Kvaal, Under Secretary of Education, U.S. Department of Education
James Kvaal was confirmed by the U.S. Senate as the Under Secretary of Education on September 14, 2021. Kvaal leads the Department’s work on higher education, student financial aid, and career and adult education. He works to build an inclusive higher education system that helps all students graduate and go on to a better life. His work has led to millions of borrowers receiving student loan forgiveness, more affordable repayment plans for future students, and stronger safeguards against future unaffordable loans.
Earlier in his career, Kvaal served in the White House under President Clinton and President Obama, including more than three years as deputy domestic policy adviser to President Obama. He was the policy director on President Obama’s 2012 campaign, a co-chair of the Biden-Harris campaign’s education advisory committee, and the deputy lead of President Biden’s Department of Education transition team.
Kvaal has also served as Deputy Under Secretary at the Department of Education and as a professional staff member in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives. Immediately prior to joining the Biden Administration, Kvaal was president of The Institute for College Access & Success (TICAS), a research and advocacy nonprofit dedicated to affordability and equity in higher education.
Kvaal taught at the University of Michigan’s Ford School of Public Policy, and he graduated with honors from Stanford University and Harvard Law School.
Lara Pruitt, Director of Education Initiatives, Kinship Foundation
Supporting Early Momentum for CCC Students
Lara Pruitt, Director of Education Initiatives, Kinship Foundation
Lara Pruitt is the Director of Education Initiatives at Kinship Foundation. In this role, she co-manages the Bridges to Brighter Futures education initiative, which aims to create equitable, affordable access to good jobs and continued career development for Black, Latinx, and low-income Chicagoans who have earned a high school diploma or GED. Funded through the Searle Funds at The Chicago Community Trust, Bridges to Brighter Futures is a collaboration between Kinship Foundation and The Chicago Community Trust.
Prior to joining Kinship Foundation, Lara worked as an education consultant, offering institutional and non-profit clients services in strategic planning, research, evaluation, and project management. Earlier in her career, she led the federal research grant, Arts Impacting Achievement (AIA) as project director, utilizing an experimental design to assess the professional growth of teachers. Lara has over thirty years of experience in education, including nine years as a Chicago Public Schools (CPS) classroom teacher and volunteer service on both elementary and high school Local School Councils in Chicago Public Schools.
Lara earned her Bachelor of Science in advertising from the University of Illinois and her Master of Arts in Teaching from National Louis University. She holds teaching certificates in grades K-9, K-12, and special education, and an endorsement in teaching English Language Learners.
Kafi Moragne-Patterson, Senior Program Director of College and Career Success, UChicago Inclusive Economy Lab
Supporting Early Momentum for CCC Students
Kafi Moragne-Patterson, Senior Program Director of College and Career Success, UChicago Inclusive Economy Lab
As the Senior Program Director of College and Career Success at the University of Chicago’s Inclusive Economy Lab, Dr. Moragne-Patterson leads the portfolio of work dedicated to understanding the impact of education initiatives across the city. She also serves as a lecturer at the University of Chicago’s Crown Family School of Social Work, Policy, and Practice. Through this work, she continues to teach, research, and publish around interdisciplinary issues, animating studies of urban education, racial and economic stratification, adolescent identity formation, and educational interventions in marginalized communities.
Prior to this transition, Dr. Moragne-Patterson led the vision for the University of Chicago Community Service Center within the Office of Civic Engagement. She also served as the Vice President of Program Quality, Innovation, and Evaluation at Chicago Scholars, where she led the research and strategy for college access and success programming that impacted thousands of talented first-generation and/or low-income students attending high schools across the city of Chicago. Prior to joining Chicago Scholars, she was a tenure track assistant professor of social work at Dominican University in River Forest, Illinois.
Dr. Moragne-Patterson is a proud alum of Kenwood Academy High School. She received a Bachelor of Arts in cultural anthropology and Africana studies from Vassar College, a Master of Social Work from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, and a PhD from the University of Chicago’s Crown Family School of Social Work, Policy, and Practice.
Lori Ellens Manuel, English Professor, Olive-Harvey College
Supporting Early Momentum for CCC Students
Lori Ellens Manuel, English Professor, Olive-Harvey College
Dr. Lori Ellens Manuel is an Associate Professor in the Communications Department at Olive-Harvey College. She started her career with City Colleges of Chicago as a high school equivalency instructor in Adult Education. Thereafter, she worked as a curriculum specialist and program manager for the Adult Education Department at Harold Washington College and District Office, respectively, before returning to Olive-Harvey in fall 2005.
Outside of work, Dr. Ellens Manuel reads African American literature, voraciously, spends time with family, faithfully, and rewrites the final season of Game of Thrones – in her mind – tenaciously.
Juan de Pablo, Executive Vice President for Science, Innovation, National Laboratories, and Global Initiatives, University of Chicago
Remarks
Juan de Pablo, Executive Vice President for Science, Innovation, National Laboratories, and Global Initiatives, University of Chicago
As the Executive Vice President for Science, Innovation, National Laboratories, and Global Initiatives, Juan de Pablo helps drive and support the expanding reach of the University’s science, technology, and innovation efforts, along with their connection to policy and industry. He identifies and shapes emerging strategic scientific and technological initiatives, and provides oversight of entrepreneurship and innovation activities at the University’s Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation. He also works with faculty, deans, and administrators to build global academic partnerships and international research collaborations while overseeing the University’s international centers.
Juan de Pablo provides leadership for the University’s stewardship of two U.S. Department of Energy National Laboratories — Argonne and Fermilab — as institutions to advance science and technology in support of the nation’s interest. He collaborates with other leaders in research and innovation to build programs and links between and among the national laboratories and the University, as well as the Marine Biological Laboratory.
A prominent molecular engineer, de Pablo focuses his research on polymers, biological macromolecules such as proteins and DNA, glasses, and liquid crystals, a diverse class of materials widely used in many fields of engineering.
Luis Narvaez, Associate Vice Chancellor for Adult Education, City Colleges of Chicago
Lessons from English Language Learners
Luis Narváez, Associate Vice Chancellor for Adult Education, City Colleges of Chicago
Luis Alfredo Narváez Gete is the Associate Vice Chancellor for Adult Education at the City Colleges of Chicago, where he leads English as a Second Language and High School Diploma preparation programs for adult learners.
In his previous role as Project Director for 10 years at the Chicago Public Schools, he led the Seal of Biliteracy initiative, recognizing the biliteracy skills of K-12 students while promoting college awareness to bilingual, immigrant, and Latinx students across the city, including recipients of the CPS DREAM Fund, the first scholarship of its kind providing financial assistance to undocumented immigrant students.
He has a Bachelor of Arts in Latin American & Caribbean Studies and Spanish from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and a Master of Arts in Educational Leadership through the ENLACE Leadership Institute at Northeastern Illinois University. He lives on Chicago’s West Side with his wife, Claudia, also an educator, and their two lovely boys. He is completing his doctoral degree at National Louis University in Higher Education Leadership.
Nikki Edgecombe, Senior Research Scholar, Community College Research Center
Lessons from English Language Learners
Nikki Edgecombe, Senior Research Scholar, Community College Research Center
Nikki Edgecombe is a senior research scholar at the Community College Research Center (CCRC) and a research professor in the Education Policy and Social Analysis Department at Teachers College, Columbia University. She conducts research on English learners, developmental education, higher education finance, teaching and learning, faculty development, and workforce development, among other topics.
Edgecombe is the principal investigator for a U.S. Department of Education Institute of Education Sciences (IES)-funded research partnership with the City Colleges of Chicago, which explores the experiences and outcomes of English learners. Also, she is principal investigator for the Center for the Analysis of Postsecondary Readiness (CAPR) and a co-principal investigator for the Postsecondary Teaching with Technology Collaborative, both IES research and development centers.
Edgecombe oversees CCRC’s research portfolio on developmental education, which, in addition to CAPR, has in recent years included a mixed-methods study of developmental English reform and English as a Second Language in three states and the implementation portion of the MDRC-led IES evaluation of CUNY Start. She also studies and writes about education equity and wrote “Demography as Opportunity,” a chapter in the 2019 edited volume Thirteen Ideas That Are Transforming the Community College World.
Edgecombe holds a PhD and a Master of Science in Education from the University of Pennsylvania and a Bachelor of Arts in Urban Studies–Economics from Columbia University.
Aida Zakarieva, Adult Education Student, Malcolm X College
Lessons from English Language Learners
Aida Zakarieva, Adult Education Student, Malcolm X College
Aida Zakarieva is an Adult Education student at Malcolm X College. She is originally from Moscow, Russia, but has been living in Chicago for the last three years. In Russia, she was an ENT (ear, nose, and throat) doctor. Now, she is working on improving her English skills at Malcolm X College, with the goal of becoming a professor at a medical school one day.
Veronica Posada, Adult Education Student, Truman College
Lessons from English Language Learners
Verónica Posada, Adult Education Student, Truman College
Verónica Posada is an Adult Education student at Truman College. She moved to Chicago in 2007 in pursuit of better lives for herself and her family. After arriving in the U.S., she dedicated her time and energy to supporting her three kids and husband, leaving aside her professional life. However, she is now in the Career Bridge program at Truman College, where she is working towards earning a basic certificate in Early Childhood Education while improving her English skills. Veronica’s ultimate goal is to teach children Spanish or help Spanish speakers’ children with the language transition.
Stacia Edwards, Deputy Provost, City Colleges of Chicago
Achieving Workforce Relevance
Stacia Edwards, Deputy Provost, City Colleges of Chicago
Dr. Stacia Edwards is the Deputy Provost for the City Colleges of Chicago. She provides leadership and support for academic and student affairs, working closely with Adult Education, high school partnerships, student services, accreditation and academic policy, curriculum, faculty development, continuing education, workforce development, and work-based learning teams.
Stacia has worked in higher education for more than 30 years. Her diverse experience includes serving in leadership roles at public two- and four-year institutions, nonprofits, and the state system in Ohio.
Dr. Edwards earned degrees from Hanover College and Indiana University, as well as a Doctorate from the University of Pennsylvania.
Elizabeth Zachry Rutschow, Managing Researcher, American Institutes for Research
Achieving Workforce Relevance
Elizabeth Zachry Rutschow, Managing Researcher, American Institutes for Research
Elizabeth Zachry Rutschow is a managing researcher at American Institutes for Research (AIR). She is an expert in postsecondary and adult education reform and has led many large-scale, mixed-method evaluations of community college and adult education reforms. She is dedicated to using qualitative and quantitative research to improve equity and the prosperity and well-being of underserved individuals through promising education and workforce interventions.
Dr. Rutschow has nearly 20 years of experience conducting qualitative and quantitative studies on topics as wide-ranging as assessments of adults’ literacy skills to college mathematics reforms to integrating work-based learning opportunities into postsecondary settings. Prior to joining AIR, she was a senior research associate at MDRC where she spent 14 years leading a multitude of research projects on an array of topics including community college institutional reform, the integration of college- and career-readiness interventions in adult basic education programs, improving the participation of underrepresented students in college STEM programs, career and technical education programs in postsecondary education, and developmental education reforms aimed accelerating students’ progress to college-level courses and improving the instruction and supports provided in college classes.
Dr. Rutschow was a lead researcher at the Center for the Analysis of Postsecondary Readiness (CAPR), an IES-funded research and development center focused on improving the evidence on developmental education reform. She led CAPR’s instructional study, a mixed-method, randomized controlled trial (RCT) study of the pedagogical, content, and structural changes in developmental and college-level math courses. She also authored a series of reports surveying the landscape, scope, and scale of developmental education reform in the nation.
Dr. Rutschow is an expert in synthesizing rigorous research on promising programs and interventions including two reviews analyzing the most promising reforms in developmental and adult education (Unlocking the Gate and Beyond the GED). She also synthesized research evidence on developmental math reforms for the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) in 2019. From 2007 to 2012, she was the project director for MDRC’s evaluation of Achieving the Dream, one of the largest community college reform initiatives in the country. In this role, she led studies documenting the implementation of the initiative across 27 colleges, a mixed-method RCT study of college student success courses,a cost study, and several qualitative studies profiling new interventions and strategies implemented during colleges’ participation in the initiative.
Before joining MDRC in 2007, Dr. Rutschow worked as a researcher and teacher at Harvard’s National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy and is a specialist in reading instruction.
Roy Walker, III, Interim Vice President of Academic and Student Affairs, Malcolm X College
Achieving Workforce Relevance
Roy Walker, III, Interim Vice President of Academic and Student Affairs, Malcolm X College
Roy Walker, III, is the Interim Vice President of Academic and Student Affairs at Malcolm X College. Walker has over 15 years of service to Malcolm X College through a number of evolving leadership roles.
In his previous role as Executive Dean of Health Sciences & Career Programs, Walker was instrumental in the development of six additional certificate and degree programs in response to high community and workforce demand: Community Health Worker, Health Information Technology, Medical Assisting, Mammography, Personal Fitness Trainer, and Physical Therapist Assistant. His department held and still holds the second largest market share of healthcare program completers from a non-profit institution in the region at 20%.
Recognized in the community for his expertise in clinical exercise physiology and wellness programming, Walker is passionate about providing equity and access to education. He has presented at several national conferences, and, most recently, he completed a fellowship with the University of Chicago in the Civic Leadership Academy (CLA) – a program designed for high-performing nonprofit and government leaders who seek rigorous leadership development.
Roy Walker is a dedicated public servant with a demonstrated history in post-secondary education, curriculum development, workforce advancement, and academic management. In 2021, he was recognized by City Colleges of Chicago as the administrator of the year.
David Jaeger, Business Practices & Project Consultant, Zurich Insurance
Achieving Workforce Relevance
David Jaeger, Business Practices & Project Consultant, Zurich Insurance
David Jaeger works at Zurich North America as a Business Practices & Project Consultant for the Office of Apprenticeship team within Human Resources. As a career changer, he joined Zurich as an apprentice himself in 2018, working with cyber security on the Threat Intelligence team.
Prior to Zurich, David worked for nine years in higher education at two universities, where he coordinated student success initiatives and instructed courses on navigating the college environment and leadership in the workplace. David has a passion for helping and supporting individuals in developing and executing their career aspirations.
Marianne Bertrand, Faculty Director, University of Chicago Inclusive Economy Lab
Holistic Supports for Community College Students: A Randomized Controlled Trial of One Million Degrees
Marianne Bertrand, Faculty Director, University of Chicago Inclusive Economy Lab
Marianne Bertrand is an applied micro-economist whose research covers the fields of labor economics, corporate finance, political economy and development economics. Born in Belgium, Professor Bertrand received a bachelor’s degree in economics from Belgium’s Universite Libre de Bruxelles in 1991, followed by a Master’s Degree in econometrics from the same institution the next year. She earned a PhD in economics from Harvard University in 1998. She was a faculty member in the Department of Economics at Princeton University for two years before joining the University of Chicago Booth School of Business in 2000.
Professor Bertrand is a Co-Director of Chicago Booth’s Rustandy Center for Social Sector Innovation and the Director of the Inclusive Economy Lab at the University of Chicago Urban Labs.
Bertrand is a Research Fellow at the National Bureau of Economic Research, the Center for Economic Policy Research, and the Institute for the Study of Labor. She is also a Fellow of the National Academy of Science, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the Econometric Society.
Aneesh Sohoni, CEO, One Million Degrees
Holistic Supports for Community College Students: A Randomized Controlled Trial of One Million Degrees
Aneesh Sohoni, CEO, One Million Degrees
Aneesh is currently the Chief Executive Officer at One Million Degrees (OMD), an organization that accelerates community college students’ progress on career pathways to economic mobility.
Aneesh is the child of immigrants and was compelled to begin his career in education because of the meaningful role access to educational opportunity played in his family’s life. He started as a high school English teacher. It was his experience working with his students that brought to life for Aneesh the limitless potential of students and the need to ensure all students had access to opportunities to meet their potential.
Since leaving the classroom, Aneesh has worked in the public and non-profit sectors to support education reform efforts at a city and state level. This includes his time at the Tennessee Department of Education, where he played a major role in the design and implementation of the state’s transformative teacher evaluation system, and at TNTP (formerly The New Teacher Project), where he supported human capital and academic reform efforts in Camden, NJ and Boston, MA. Most recently, Aneesh served as the Executive Director for Teach For America in Greater Chicago and Northwest Indiana for nearly six years.
Aneesh was previously named to Forbes 30 under 30 for education, is a 2019 Leadership Greater Chicago Fellow, a member of The Economic Club of Chicago, and serves on the board of Teach For India—U.S.
Veronica Herrero, Chief of Staff and Strategy, City Colleges of Chicago
Holistic Supports for Community College Students: A Randomized Controlled Trial of One Million Degrees
Veronica Herrero, Chief of Staff and Strategy, City Colleges of Chicago
Veronica Herrero currently serves as the Chief of Staff and Strategy at the City Colleges of Chicago. In her capacity, she supports the Chancellor and partners with the seven presidents of the City Colleges in the successful execution of the district’s five-year strategic framework and college strategic plans. She provides strategic leadership and oversight for the district in the areas of equity, advancement, community and government relations, and continuous improvement initiatives.
Prior to joining City Colleges of Chicago, Veronica was Chief Program Officer of One Million Degrees (OMD), a non-profit organization partnering with community colleges in the Chicagoland area and committed to empowering community college students to succeed in school, work, and life. She brings over fifteen years of cross-sector leadership experience in strategy, design, student success, and education management through her previous roles at OMD, the University of Chicago Urban Education Institute, and Chicago Public Schools.
Veronica is the proud daughter of two Mexican immigrants and mother to two young boys. She has dedicated her career to ensuring equitable paths to economic mobility, in service of first-generation students and communities of color.
Veronica serves on the Illinois Board of Higher Education (IBHE) as Vice Chair, the Northern Illinois University Board of Trustees, and the Girls, Inc of Chicago Board of Directors. Veronica holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, a Master in Business Administration from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, and is an alumna of the University of Chicago Civic Leadership Academy.
Kelly Hallberg, Scientific Director, University of Chicago Inclusive Economy Lab
Holistic Supports for Community College Students: A Randomized Controlled Trial of One Million Degrees
Kelly Hallberg, Scientific Director, University of Chicago Inclusive Economy Lab
Kelly Hallberg is the Scientific Director for the Inclusive Economy Lab, where she is responsible for the scientific rigor and direction of the Lab’s projects. She oversees a portfolio of applied research projects designed to result in greater economic opportunity for young people harmed by discrimination, disinvestment, and segregation. She has over 17 years of experience conducting applied policy research.
Much of Dr. Hallberg’s recent work has focused on improving the post-secondary educational attainment of students from low-income households. This includes leading a randomized controlled trial of One Million Degrees; a mixed-methods study designed to provide a comprehensive picture of how the cost of college is shaping and constraining the college choices of Chicago Public School (CPS) students; and a research practice partnership with CPS and CCC designed to support college students’ early academic momentum in college. A methodologist by training, Dr. Hallberg is an expert in experimental and quasi-experimental design. Committed to ensuring that research is not only rigorous but relevant, she thinks extensively about how research can inform practice and policy at scale.
Before joining the University of Chicago, Dr. Hallberg was principal researcher specializing in educational program evaluation and policy analysis at the American Institutes for Research. She also previously worked at Chapin Hall at the University of Chicago and as an aide for Senator Tom Harkin. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in political science from Carleton College, a Master of Public Policy from UChicago Harris, and a Doctorate in human development and social policy from Northwestern University.
Joanna Trotter, Executive Director for Global Philanthropy (Chicago and Minneapolis-St. Paul Markets), JPMorgan Chase
Holistic Supports for Community College Students: A Randomized Controlled Trial of One Million Degrees
Joanna Trotter, Executive Director for Global Philanthropy (Chicago and Minneapolis-St. Paul Markets), JPMorgan Chase
Joanna Trotter serves as the executive director/senior program officer for the Chicago and Minneapolis-St. Paul markets for Global Philanthropy at JPMorgan Chase. Joanna leads the Chicago philanthropy team, including carrying out the firm’s $150 million commitment to Chicago, in addition to partnering on the firm-wide $30 billion racial equity commitment.
Prior to joining JPMorgan Chase, Joanna served as the senior director of community impact for The Chicago Community Trust where she informed the Trust’s 10-year racial wealth gap commitment and led the growing housing hold wealth strategy team. Joanna also spent three years as director of neighborhood development for the University of Chicago’s Office of Civic Engagement where she guided and coordinated University investments largely in the Woodlawn and Washington Park communities and ten years forwarding the Metropolitan Planning Council’s community building work across the seven-county Chicago region, serving as the organization’s vice president in her last position.
Joanna holds a Master of Arts from the University of California Los Angeles in Urban and Regional Planning. She is a proud resident of Chicago’s South Side with her husband Shaan, her kids Aubrey and Sanaya, and three cute pets.
Lisa Castillo Richmond, Executive Director, Partnership for College Completion
Bringing Research Findings to Scale: OMD Expansion
Lisa Castillo Richmond, Executive Director, Partnership for College Completion
Lisa Castillo Richmond is an entrepreneurial higher education leader committed to collaborative approaches to addressing longstanding racial and socioeconomic inequities in colleges, universities, and higher education systems.
Lisa became the Partnership for College Completion’s second Executive Director in 2021 after serving as the founding Managing Director since 2016. Prior to returning to Illinois, she served as the Executive Director of the college completion initiative Graduate NYC at the City University of New York and has led national and local program teams for nonprofit education organizations, predominantly those focused on college access and success.
Lisa is a graduate of Marquette University and holds a Master of Arts in Education & Social Policy from New York University. She is currently a doctoral student in Higher Education at Loyola University Chicago. As a first-generation college student, she is deeply committed to addressing structural inequities in higher education.
Kimberly Hollingsworth, President, Olive-Harvey College
Bringing Research Findings to Scale: OMD Expansion
Kimberly Hollingsworth, President, Olive-Harvey College
Olive-Harvey College President Kimberly Hollingsworth, an East St. Louis native, has over 25 years of experience in higher education. Ms. Hollingsworth started her career in education immediately following college. She began working as the Cook County Recruitment Coordinator for Eastern Illinois University (EIU), her alma mater, where she earned her undergraduate and graduate degree in Business and Education, respectively. While attending EIU, she was initiated into the nationally recognized service sorority, Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. Following EIU, Ms. Hollingsworth accepted the Assistant Director of Transfer Student Recruitment position at DePaul University where she automated and improved transfer services.
In 1999, Ms. Hollingsworth followed her passion of serving underrepresented student populations and transitioned to Harold Washington College as the Director of the Transfer Center. At Harold Washington College, she ran the center and managed the Special Populations and Higher Education Cooperative Act Grants while also teaching as an adjunct Business faculty. Ms. Hollingsworth spent five years at Harold Washington College before taking on the role of Assistant Dean of Student Services at Richard J. Daley College and later assumed the position of Dean of Continuing Education (CE) at Malcolm X College. Ms. Hollingsworth served Malcolm X College in a number of capacities over her 11-year tenure. While serving in the capacity of Dean of CE, she was asked to step in as the Dean of Students to get the College through their Higher Learning Commission site visit. Under her leadership as Dean of Students, the College experienced tremendous enrollment growth, and Ms. Hollingsworth was then promoted to Dean of Instruction, serving in that capacity until being appointed to the position of Vice President of Academic and Student Affairs. Ms. Hollingsworth served as the Vice President, leading over 126 full time faculty and managing the largest academic Department within the College, until her most recent appointment as President at Olive-Harvey College in 2019.
Ms. Hollingsworth welcomes the charge of leading Olive-Harvey College on the city’s far South Side. Olive-Harvey College serves thousands of students annually in their pursuit of a certificate, degree, high school equivalency, or to learn English as a second language. Ms. Hollingsworth has participated in and helped lead two Higher Learning Commission reaffirmation visits, has successfully written grant proposals totaling over $10 million, has developed strong and sustainable shared governance models while at the City Colleges of Chicago, and is known for her experience in strategic planning and strategic enrollment management. On a personal note, Ms. Hollingsworth enjoys reading, working out, and, most importantly, raising her son.
PuraCarina Gonzalez, Director of Innovation and Strategic Initiatives at One Million Degrees
Bringing Research Findings to Scale: OMD Expansion
PuraCarina Gonzalez, Director of Innovation and Strategic Initiatives, One Million Degrees
As the Director of Innovation and Strategic Initiatives, PuraCarina Gonzalez leads One Million Degrees (OMD)’s partnerships and initiatives, including workforce development, recruiting, and housing authority collaborations. PuraCarina joined OMD in 2015 as Manager of Scholar Recruitment, developing and leading strategy for scholar recruitment and onboarding, and was promoted to Director of College Partnerships in 2017.
Prior to OMD, PuraCarina worked for City Year Chicago, Peer Health Exchange-Chicago and the Workers Organizing Committee of Chicago. PuraCarina graduated from The University of Wisconsin-Madison and is a proud Posse Chicago alum. PuraCarina is also a graduate of the Surge Fellowship.
Marvin Slaughter, Portfolio Manager, UChicago Inclusive Economy Lab
Bringing Research Findings to Scale: OMD Expansion
Marvin Slaughter, Portfolio Manager, UChicago Inclusive Economy Lab
Marvin Slaughter is a Senior Portfolio Manager in the College and Career Success Portfolio at the University of Chicago Inclusive Economy Lab. Outside of this work, he researches and publishes on topics of economic stratification, intergenerational mobility, and reparatory justice. He is specifically interested in the role of higher education in ameliorating the racial (lineage) wealth gap, with a particular interest in wealth accumulation and upward social mobility for Black Americans.
Prior to joining the Inclusive Economy Lab, he led the African American Leadership and Policy Institute, a non-partisan research and advocacy organization focused on the identification, development, and implementation of policy approaches to achieve racial and socioeconomic equity through the lens of Black community interests and applications.
Marvin is the current Chairman of the Illinois African Descent- Citizens Reparations Commission. He also serves on the National Youth Advisory Board for the Young Invincibles, a national advocacy organization for young adults concerned with issues such as higher education, health care, workforce and finances, and civic engagement.
Marvin graduated with a B.A. in political science and economics from the University of Illinois-Chicago. Marvin also holds a master’s degree in Public Policy with certificates in Policy Analysis and Municipal Finance from the University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policy.
Tomika Bernstein, Olive-Harvey College Student and One Million Degrees Scholar
Bringing Research Findings to Scale: OMD Expansion
Tomika Bernstein, Olive-Harvey College Student and One Million Degrees Scholar
Tomika Bernstein knows first-hand how education and the right support can change a person’s life. She earned a basic certificate in supply chain management from Olive-Harvey College at the end of 2021 and a National Safety Council Lift Truck Operator credential in May of 2022. Tomika continued to stack credentials, and she went on to earn an advanced certificate in supply chain management and logistics before completing her Associate of Arts and Sciences in the same field. Tomika’s hard work was bolstered by the welcoming staff at Olive-Harvey College, who listened to her and guided her in the direction of her goals.
Carmelo Barbaro, Executive Director, University of Chicago Inclusive Economy Lab
Closing Remarks
Carmelo Barbaro, Executive Director, University of Chicago Inclusive Economy Lab
Carmelo Barbaro is the Executive Director of the Inclusive Economy Lab. He previously worked as a Project Leader in the Chicago office of the Boston Consulting Group (BCG). Prior to joining BCG, he spent several years working in urban planning and community development, with a focus on low-income communities in the cities of Chicago and Milwaukee. He holds a Bachelor of Arts. in government from Harvard University, a Master of Science. in regional and urban planning studies from the London School of Economics and Political Science, and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business.
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