Press Release

CONTACT: Debra Humphreys
(202) 387-3760
e-mail: humphreys@aacu.org

The Association of American Colleges and Universities Announces the Appointment of Five New Members to Its Board of Directors

Washington, DC—April 12, 2002—The Association of American Colleges and Universities (AAC&U) announced today the appointment of five new members to its Board of Directors. These national educational leaders will begin their two-year terms at the Association's upcoming April Board of Directors meeting.

New AAC&U Board of Directors members include: John T. Casteen, III, president, University of Virginia; Elaine P. Maimon, chief executive officer and provost, Arizona State University-West; Thomas L. (Les) Purce, president, The Evergreen State College; Jamienne S. Studley, president, Skidmore College; and Jim Pence, provost and dean of the college, St. Olaf College and chair, American Conference of Academic Deans (ex officio member).

"AAC&U is pleased to welcome such a distinguished group of national leaders to its Board of Directors," said Troy Duster, chair, AAC&U Board of Directors. "These individuals will bring a wealth of experience and innovative thinking to the Board as it charts the future of AAC&U's work in strengthening and advancing liberal learning for all students."

John T. Casteen, III, became president of the University of Virginia in August, 1990. After teaching English at the University of California-Berkeley and the University of Virginia, President Casteen served as Virginia's secretary of education from 1982-1985. From 1985-1990, he was president of the University of Connecticut. President Casteen holds three degrees in English from the University of Virginia including a B.A. in 1965, M.A. in 1966, and Ph.D. in 1970.

Elaine P. Maimon has served since 1996 as campus chief executive officer and provost of Arizona State University-West, one of the three anchor campuses of Arizona State University. She also serves as a vice president of Arizona State University as a whole. Provost Maimon served in a number of teaching and administrative roles at Haverford College, Arcadia University, Brown University, and Queens College (CUNY). Provost Maimon received all her advanced degrees-B.A., M.A., and Ph.D. in English-from the University of Pennsylvania.

Thomas L. (Les) Purce assumed the presidency of The Evergreen State College on July 1, 2000. Prior to that, he served as vice president of extended university affairs and dean of extended academic programs at Washington State University in Pullman, Washington. In addition to a variety of other positions he has held over the years, President Purce is currently the president of the Council of Public Liberal Arts Colleges (2001-2002). President Purce holds a B.A. degree in psychology, an M.A. degree in education, and a Doctor of Counselor Education from Idaho State University.

Jamienne S. Studley took office as Skidmore's sixth president in June, 1999. She came to Skidmore from the U.S. Department of Education where she was deputy and then general counsel (1993-1999). She also served as associate dean and lecturer in law at Yale Law School and has served in many other capacities in education, non-profit organizations, and government. President Studley received her B.A. degree in American Studies in 1972 from Barnard College. She received her law degree in 1975 from Harvard Law School.

Jim Pence, provost and dean of the college, began at St. Olaf College in 1996 as vice president and dean of the college. He served previously as vice president for academic affairs and dean of the faculty at Wartburg College in Waverly, Iowa and as associate vice president for academic and student affairs at the University of Southern Colorado. Provost Pence received his B.A. and M.A. degrees in English from Colorado State University and his Ph.D. in English from the University of Arizona. As the current chair of the board of the American Conference of Academic Deans, Provost Pence serves as an ex officio member of AAC&U's board of directors.

AAC&U also welcomes a new slate of officers elected at its business meeting in January, 2002 that include: Troy Duster, professor of Sociology, New York University and chancellor's professor, University of California, Berkeley (chair of the board); John Noonan, President, Bloomfield College (vice chair of the board); Nancy Dye, President, Oberlin College (past chair); Ronald Williams, president, Prince George's Community College (treasurer).

AAC&U is the leading national association devoted to advancing and strengthening liberal learning for all students, regardless of academic specialization or intended career. Since its founding in 1915, AAC&U's membership has grown to more than 750 accredited public and private colleges and universities of every type and size.

AAC&U functions as a catalyst and facilitator, forging links among presidents, administrators, and faculty members who are engaged in institutional and curricular planning. Its mission is to reinforce the collective commitment to liberal education at both the national and local levels and to help individual institutions keep the quality of student learning at the core of their work as they evolve to meet new economic and social challenges.

Information about AAC&U membership, programs and publications can be found at www.aacu.org.

Revised April 15, 2002