Dr. Yolanda Gibson Named ACE Fellow for 2018-19

The American Council on Education (ACE) has named Dr. Yolanda Gibson of Marymount University as an ACE Fellow for the 2018-19 academic year. Dr. Gibson serves as associate dean of first year experience at Marymount. 

Established in 1965, the ACE Fellows Program identifies and prepares faculty and staff for senior positions in college and university administration. Following nomination by Marymount President Matthew Shank, Gibson was one of 45 Fellows selected this year.
    
The program combines retreats, interactive learning opportunities, campus visits and placement at another higher education institution. Fellows observe and work with the president and other senior officers at their host institution, attend decision-making meetings, and focus on issues of interest. Gibson said she hopes to work on an enrollment management project involving transfer and non-traditional students during her fellowship.
    
“Yolanda is a perfect candidate for the fellowship because of her passion for learning and improving herself, and her commitment to making Marymount University a better place,” said Dr. Shank. “We hope Yolanda comes back with great new ideas that she can implement here at Marymount.”
    
Shank, an ACE Fellow at Vanderbilt University during the 2003-2004 academic year, said the opportunity for Gibson to observe another institution and work with its leadership will provide invaluable experience. 
    
“I am honored, and humbled, and very excited about this blessing and opportunity,” Gibson said. “I am also very thankful that my nominator, Dr. Shank, entrusted me with such a fellowship, and the chance to broaden my experience learning about both public and private universities and colleges.”
    
Gibson oversees academic advising for all Marymount first year students and coordinates seminar classes that introduce students to active learning and student engagement. She is also responsible for coordinating and facilitating efforts across the university to provide a unified approach to interventions aimed at increasing retention and success rates of those students.
    
Prior to her current position, she served as Marymount’s director of Alumni Relations, director of the Student Success Center at the University of the District of Columbia’s Community College, director of Campus & Community Relations at Northern Virginia Community College (Alexandria Campus), and academic coordinator at George Washington University’s Graduate Center. She has also been an adjunct professor at NOVA and UDC-CC.
    
She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree from Marymount in communication studies and business administration, and both a Master of Arts degree in community college teaching and a Doctor of Arts degree in higher education administration from George Mason University.

Photo caption
Dr. Yolanda Gibson