HOUSTON (March 22, 2019) – After a nationwide search, Houston Community College (HCC) has named Dr. Monique Umphrey president of HCC Northeast, pending approval of her contract by the Board of Trustees.
Chancellor Cesar Maldonado says, “Dr. Umphrey shares our bold vision for elevating Houston Community College to new heights. She has a proven record of success as a leader in higher education and has a history of many accomplishments.”
Currently serving as Cuyahoga Community College’s (Tri-C) Vice President of Workforce Innovation and Dean for Information Technology, Dr. Umphrey is scheduled to begin her duties May 6.
At Tri-C, she provides vision and guidance in integrated academic and workforce programs for the IT Center of Excellence, increasing IT degree completion rates by seven percent.
One of Dr. Umphrey’s many accomplishments is establishing Bridge to Bachelor pathways to align college credits for Cleveland Metropolitan School District students between high school and four-year colleges.
“Tri-C is the connector and navigator,” says Dr. Umphrey. She also led the IT Center of Excellence textbook affordability initiative to utilize Open Educational Resources (OER) materials and established partnerships with the industry, including IBM and Apple. In addition, Dr. Umphrey was a member of the inaugural class of the Aspen Presidential Fellowship for Community College Excellence, a rigorous executive leadership program led by the Aspen Institute and the Stanford Educational Leadership Initiative.
Prior to joining Tri-C, Dr. Umphrey worked for 20 years in multiple industries and for such companies as Med Solutions, ACS (Xerox) and Bridgestone/ Firestone. This experience in leading enterprise projects for Fortune 500 companies has given her the skills needed to lead teams, manage resources, plan projects and administer budgets. Such experience also gives her a keen understanding of the factors driving change and innovation, especially as she has applied her knowledge of workforce and academics to her leadership positions in higher education.
“Her education, private sector experience and her broad work in higher education as faculty and administrator, make her a great addition to the HCC Family,” says Dr. Maldonado.
Dr. Umphrey’s education includes a doctoral degree in management from the University of Maryland and a Master of Science, as well as a Bachelor of Business Administration, from Middle Tennessee State University. Her memberships include American Association of Community Colleges; Workforce Development Institute and Achieving the Dream.
“We look forward to Dr. Umphrey’s leadership as we elevate Houston Community College to an even greater level of success,” says Dr. Maldonado.