Given all the challenges of 2020, Ortega thinks admissions teams may modify their calculus when choosing their next class. Grades and test scores will still matter, but applicants' life experiences could be given more weight.

"Students approaching graduate school will be encountering ... a more humane and holistic process," said Ortega.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Contact: Katherine Hazelrigg  (202) 461-3888 / khazelrigg@cgs.nche.edu

Washington, DC – The Council of Graduate Schools (CGS) Board of Directors has announced its officers for the 2021 term. CGS is governed by an 11-member Board of Directors drawn from member institutions. Board members serve set terms.

Dr. Andrew G. Campbell, dean of the Graduate School at Brown University, was announced as the 2021 Board Chair at the conclusion of the 2020 CGS 60^th Anniversary Annual Meeting. Appointed to his role in 2016, Campbell is also professor of medical science in the Division of Biology & Medicine at Brown. He has taught and advised Brown undergraduate and graduate students since his faculty appointment began in 1994. He has received numerous honors, including the National Science Foundation CAREER Award, American Foundations for AIDS Research Investigator Award, and Brown’s Presidential Award for Excellence in Faculty Governance. He is also a 2020-elected AAAS Fellow. Campbell is PI and Co-PI for two National Institutes of Health (NIH) grants and leads the NIH-funded Initiative to Maximize Student Development in Brown’s Division of Biology and Medicine, a program to improve recruiting and performance of URM students in doctoral programs.

“Dr. Campbell’s expertise in graduate education and commitment to improved recruiting and performance of underrepresented minority graduate students will be vital as he leads the Council into the next decade. He has provided outstanding leadership during his tenure at Brown University and will help advance CGS’ mission to address the needs of our member institutions, particularly as we continue to navigate these unprecedented times,” said CGS President Suzanne T. Ortega.

The new Chair-elect, Dr. Julie Coonrod serves as the dean of graduate studies at the University of New Mexico. Since Dr. Coonrod became dean in 2013, she has streamlined processes to improve graduate student tracking and completion and expanded funding opportunities. As a professor in Civil, Construction, & Environmental Engineering; she has continued to teach a graduate-level course that emphasizes the modeling capabilities of geographic information systems to students seeking a variety of graduate degrees. Dean Coonrod is the past president of the Western Association of Graduate Schools (2019-2020).

The Council welcomes five new board members, whose terms will begin on January 1, 2021. Beginning one-year terms are Dr. Jeni Hart, dean and vice provost for graduate studies at the University of Missouri, Columbia, and Dr. James Marshall, dean of the division of graduate studies at California State University Fresno. Beginning three-year terms are Dr. April Boulton, dean of The Graduate School at Hood College; Dr. Michael Cunningham, associate vice provost for graduate studies and research at Tulane University; and Dr. Sheryl Tucker, vice provost and dean of the Graduate College at Oklahoma State University.

This year’s outgoing Chair of the Board is Dr. Sally Pratt, former vice provost, graduate programs at the University of Southern California. “We are so fortunate to have had Dr. Pratt’s leadership as CGS Board Chair the past year,” Ortega said. “She has contributed significantly to the success of graduate students at USC and to graduate education more broadly in her efforts to prioritize graduate student mental health and wellbeing.”

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On November 20, CGS joined 45 other higher education organizations on a community letter to the Biden administration's transition team detailing regulatory priorities for higher education, including Title IX reform, preservation of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, protections for international students, and more.

The CGS Congressional Champion Award recognizes members of Congress who demonstrate remarkable work in championing graduate education through the federal policy process. This distinction honors up to two members of either the House of Representatives or the Senate, annually. The selection process will carefully weigh the efforts of a candidate’s tenure in Congress and will be a non-partisan process. The award will carry no monetary recognition and will adhere to the House and Senate Ethics Committees’ rules on gift giving. 

Eligibility for Selection

To be selected for the CGS Congressional Champion Award, the member of Congress must:

• Be serving in Congress at the time the award is slated to be presented to him/her;
• Have demonstrated strong advocacy for graduate education issues related to CGS’s Federal Policy Agenda (ex- introduced legislation, gone on record supporting graduate education during a Congressional hearing, served in a leadership role on a committee of jurisdiction or Congressional caucus that advanced graduate education issues);
• Not be a prior recipient of the CGS Congressional Champion Award.

2020 Recipients

Representative Annie Kuster (NH-02) led the introduction of the Expanding Access to Graduate Education Act (H.R. 3334), which would provide former Pell Grant recipients the opportunity to apply remaining semesters of Pell Grant support not exhausted during their undergraduate education towards their first post-baccalaureate degree. True to the spirit of the Pell Grant program, this legislation would help ensure that qualified, low-income students would have a better chance of pursuing graduate education. We applaud Representative Kuster who worked to introduce the bill alongside her colleagues from both sides of the aisle.

Representative Rodney Davis (IL-13) has fought tirelessly to preserve and expand certain tax provisions so that individuals and employers can utilize them toward academic pursuits. He has introduced and is an original cosponsor of several bills that support this endeavor, including championing legislation that would expand employer-provided educational assistance to include payments of qualified education loans. Additionally, Congressman Davis has lent his support to international students and the Optional Practical Training program, elevating their contributions to the U.S. at a time when the pandemic has created challenges for international graduate student recruitment and retention.

See the press release for further details.

Join three experienced university partners and Discovery Education, for a just in time discussion of best practices and lessons learned for developing high quality graduate level online courses that are rigorous, compelling, engaging, and relevant.  Learn how Discovery Education partners with universities for online learning.  Buena Vista University, University of Findlay and Wilkes University will also share how they deliver innovative instruction while fostering expertise in online teaching and learning among their faculty.

Register to:

• Hear why and how these three universities have developed fully online elements of their graduate offerings
• Gain exposure to new delivery methods for online graduate courses
• Learn how a partnership with a content provider can enhance the catalog of offerings, increase the use of relevant digital content, and aide in driving enrollment

The “map” for graduate recruitment is changing. Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, international applications were declining in many fields, and travel restrictions to the United States signal this trend will continue into the foreseeable future. Institutions need to tap into new and more diverse domestic applicant pools as they adjust their recruitment strategies. How colleges and universities find their bearings and reorient to this new landscape will determine the health of graduate education in the years to come. Webinar sponsored by Liaison.