The mission of the American Conference of Academic Deans (ACAD) is to provide chief academic officers and other academic administrators with networking and professional development opportunities and to support them in their work as educational leaders. ACAD members are characterized by their shared commitment to student learning and to the ideals of liberal education. To learn more about ACAD, visit: www.acad-edu.org.

Higher Education Resource Services (HERS), Mid-America, located at the University of Denver, sponsors professional development activities designed to improve the status of women in higher education. Currently the office is engaged in four programs to facilitate the professional development of women in higher education and their advancement into positions of ever-greater responsibility and authority. These programs include: The Summer Institute for Women in Higher Education; HERS, New England Management Institute for Women in Higher Education; NACWAA/HERS Institute for Administrative Advancement; and HERS South Africa. To learn more about HERS, visit: womenscollege.du.edu/chamberscenter/hersmid-america.html

The American Council on Education (ACE)’s Office of Women in Higher Education (OWHE) offers several resources and opportunities for recognizing, cultivating, and supporting women’s leadership, particularly at the senior level, in higher education. These different resources and programs include: ACE/OWHE Leadership Awards, ACE State Network Leadership Development Programs, ACE National and Regional Leadership Forums, and ACE Fellows Program. To learn more about these opportunities, as well as additional ACE resources, visit: www.acenet.edu/AM/Template.cfm?Section=OWHE&
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The Harvard Graduate School of Education offers several different professional and leadership education programs for administrators in higher education. Two of their competitive summer programs include the Management Development Program (MDP) and the Institute for Management and Leadership in Education (MLE). MDP is geared toward mid-level administrators who are in the early years of their careers and focuses on innovative and practical ideas about critical management challenges. MLE is oriented toward experienced administrators, and focuses on institutional academic change agendas and initiatives. Information on these programs, as well as other programs for new presidents and other academic administrators can be found at: www.gse.harvard.edu/ppe/highered/index.html.