News from NAICU

Jo Allen, Ph.D., president of Meredith College (NC), has been elected chair of the Board of Directors for the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities (NAICU).  Allen leads a list of four new board officers and 14 new board members who took office at the close of the 2019 NAICU Annual Meeting and Advocacy Day held in Washington, DC.
 
NAICU board members set the association’s agenda on federal higher education policy, actively encourage support for the association’s priorities and initiatives, and oversee the organization’s financial administration.  Board members serve three-year terms, while officers serve one-year terms.
 
Allen succeeds Andrew K. Benton, president and CEO of Pepperdine University (CA) who remains on the board as immediate past chair.
 
“Jo Allen brings a deep commitment to higher education and a keen understanding of the political environment in Washington to the role of NAICU board chair,” said NAICU President David L. Warren, Ph.D.  “As president at Meredith College, she has led efforts to recruit students with dramatically improved board scores, sustained enrollment, and enhanced campus services and facilities.  Widely regarded as a leader in higher education, she will bring significant experience to the role of NAICU board chair.”
 
“This is a period of transition for private, nonprofit colleges and universities, and the NAICU organization,” said Allen.  “New political forces in Washington, changing demographics among college students, and new leadership at NAICU will make 2019-20 a year of significant challenges and opportunity.  I look forward to working with a strong board and the NAICU team to achieve our organizational goals.”
 
With more than 1,000 colleges, universities, and associations as members, NAICU serves as the unified national voice of independent higher education and reflects the diversity of private, nonprofit higher education in the United States.  Member institutions include major research universities, church-related colleges, historically black colleges, art and design colleges,traditional liberal arts and science institutions, women’s colleges, two-year colleges, and schools of law, medicine, engineering, business, and other professions.

Allen Background

Jo Allen took office as the eighth president of Meredith College on July 1, 2011. She is the first Meredith College alumna to assume leadership of the 127-year-old institution, one of the largest private colleges for women in the United States.

Since taking office, Allen has guided Meredith to an enviable position of strength and vitality by leading a collaborative, community-wide process to develop a comprehensive strategic plan, Meredith Forever.  In the intervening seven years, Meredith has exceeded enrollment and retention goals, completed critical improvements to campus facilities, and raised more than $90 million during Beyond Strong, its largest fundraising campaign ever.  The college also established StrongPoints®, the College’s signature coaching and personal advising program, and created a personal and professional development program for women called Stronger U. The college also has earned the highest rating from the U.S. Department of Education for financial stability and launched the Going Strong brand initiative.

Allen previously served as senior vice president and provost, and tenured professor of English, at Widener University, in Chester, Pa. There she oversaw academic and student affairs on four campuses in two states for approximately 6,500 students and more than 700 full- and part-time faculty. She also has served as tenured associate professor of English at East Carolina University and tenured associate professor at North Carolina State University.

Allen has made numerous contributions to the advancement of higher education. She has been the featured speaker and facilitator at programs including the American Council on Education Chief Academic Officer’s Institute and the Pennsylvania State University's Academic Leadership Academy. She has also served as president of the Association of Teachers of Technical Writing, the largest international scholarly organization for technical and professional communication scholars. She was a Commissioner for the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, for whom she also led training workshops on assessment and led site visits for regional and international institutions’ accreditation.  Allen also served as a board member for the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools’ Commission on Colleges and for the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education.

Allen has published and presented in more than 200 regional, national, and international scholarly venues, focusing on communication, assessment, and leadership in higher education. She is the author or editor of Writing in the Workplace and Assessment in Technical and Professional Communication, which won the Council of Program’s in Technical and Scientific Communication’s 2010 award for best contribution to the work of program assessment and the College Composition and Communication’s 2012 award.

A North Carolina native, Allen earned a master’s degree from East Carolina University and a doctorate from Oklahoma State University in English literature, with an emphasis in Technical and Professional Communication. Her B.A. from Meredith is also in English.  She has been recognized by Meredith College as a Distinguished Alumna and by East Carolina University as an Outstanding Woman of ECU.

Currently, she serves as the treasurer of the North Carolina Independent Colleges and Universities (NCICU), and as a member of  the Presidents’ Council of the Cooperating Raleigh Colleges and on the Presidents' Council of USA South, Meredith's athletic conference.

Other New Board Officers

Three other individuals were elected as Board officers, serving one-year terms expiring in February 2020:

• Roger N. Casey, Ph.D., president of McDaniel College in Westminster, MD, will serve as vice chair of the board.  He is in line to assume the position of board chair in February 2020.
• Lewis E. Thayne, Ph.D., president of Lebanon Valley College in Annville, PA, has been named treasurer.
• Andrea P. Cook, Ph.D., president of Warner Pacific University in Portland, OR, has been named secretary.

New NAICU Board Members
Eight individuals were elected to three-year terms ending in February 2022, representing the Association’s eight national regions:

• Christopher E. Hopey, Ph.D., president of Merrimack College in North Andover, MA, will represent Region I (Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont).
• Carolyn J. Stefanco, Ph.D., president of The College of Saint Rose in Albany, NY, will represent Region II (Delaware, District of Columbia, Maryland, New Jersey, and New York).
• Lillian B. Schumacher, Ed.D., president of Tiffin University in Tiffin, OH, will represent Region III (Kentucky, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia)
• Stephen R. Briggs, Ph.D., president of Berry College in Mount Berry, GA, will represent Region IV (Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Caroline, Virginia).
• Sherilyn R. Emberton, Ed.D., president of Huntington University in Huntington, IN, will represent Region V (Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, and Wisconsin).
• Eric Bruntmyer, president of Hardin-Simmons University in Abilene, TX, will represent Region VI (Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Tennessee, and Texas).
• Darrel D. Colson, Ph.D., president of Wartburg College in Waverly, IA, will represent Region VII (Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota).
• Roy F. Heynderickx, Ph.D., president of Saint Martin’s University in Lacey, WA, will represent Region VIII (Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado., Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, New Mexico Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming).

In addition, Ronald Crutcher, president of the University of Richmond (VA) will serve a one-year term created by the resignation of Robert Johnson, president of Becker College (MA).

Four additional individuals were named to three-year terms as at-large board members with terms ending in 2022:

• Colette P. Burnette, Ed.D., president of Huston-Tillotson University in Austin, TX.
• Christopher W. Kimball, Ph.D., president of California Lutheran University in Thousand Oaks, CA.
• Eric F. Spina, Ph.D., president of University of Dayton in Dayton, OH.
• Helen J. Streubert, Ed.D., president of College of Saint Elizabeth in Morristown, NJ.

In addition, David W. Tretter. president of the Federation of Independent Illinois Colleges and Universities in Springfield, IL has been elected chair of the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities State Executives and will complete a three-year term on the NAICU Board.  Susanna Baxter, president of the Georgia Independent College Association in Atlanta, GA, was elected vice president and chair-elect of NAICUSE and will serve a three-year term on the NAICU Board.

David S. O’Bryon, president of the Association of Chiropractic Colleges (MD) and incoming chair of the NAICU Secretariat will serve a three-year term on the NAICU Board.

And finally, Steve Heuer, assistant vice president, government affairs at New York University, has been appointed to a three-year term as an ad-hoc, non-voting member representing government relations professionals.

At the same time, four board members have been appointed as chairs of the association’s standing committees on policy and programs:

• Scott Flanagan, Ed.D., president of Edgewood College in Madison, WI, will chair the Accountability Committee.
• David R. Evans, Ph.D., president of Southern Vermont College in Bennington, VT, will chair the Policy Analysis and Public Relations Committee.
• Rev. J. Cameron West, Th.M., president of Huntingdon College in Montgomery, AL, will chair the Student Aid Committee
• Shirley Mullen, Ph.D., president of Houghton College in Houghton, NY, will chair the Tax Policy Committee.

The Henry Paley Memorial Award recognizes an individual who embodies a spirit of unfailing service toward the students and faculty of independent colleges and universities. The recipient of this reward has set an example for all who would seek to advance educational opportunity in the United States. Henry Paley was president of the Commission on Independent Colleges and Universities of New York from 1975 until his untimely death in 1984.  He possessed a larger than life personality and was an important force in support of private, nonprofit colleges and universities in New York
. 
Warren has announced his retirement effective June 30, 2019.

From growing up a product of the Manhattan Project in Richland, WA to hitchhiking across the country in hopes of writing the great American novel; from crossing the Edmund Pettus Bridge with civil rights leaders in 1965 to establishing new programs in legal aid, mental health, day care and community co-ops while executive director of Dwight Hall at Yale University; and from living in the dormitories as the new president of Ohio Wesleyan University to presiding for 25 years as the president of NAICU, Warren’s indefatigable optimism, unwavering faith in the human spirit, and strong sense of purpose, have been guiding forces.

Warren began his tenure as NAICU president in 1993, after nearly a decade as president of Ohio Wesleyan. A tireless crusader for America’s private, nonprofit colleges and universities, Warren, just the third president in NAICU’s history, is regarded as one of the most persuasive and influential voices for higher education within Washington, DC. Throughout Warren’s life, and through his career in local politics and higher education, he also saw firsthand the power and life-changing benefits of education. He saw that education could be an equalizer. According to OWU, the Ohio Wesleyan Magazine, Warren saw that “the most basic difference between the haves and have-nots is education.”

Warren, who has been awarded over two dozen honorary degrees, has been cited for his efforts “to restore proposed cuts in federal student aid, gain tax relief for college students and their families, and reduce intrusive and burdensome federal regulations of colleges” (Middlebury College). Warren has also been described as “one of the most respected and effective leaders in American higher education” (Kentucky Wesleyan College) and his achievements epitomize higher education’s central role in personal empowerment and the public interest (The Sage Colleges).

Warren’s time at NAICU has been marked by several significant policy achievements that have benefited colleges and universities, students and families, and communities around the country. Some examples include:

• Spearheading the Student Aid Alliance, an ongoing campaign of 86 higher education associations focused on expanding student aid. Since its launch, federal spending on student aid has increased significantly, and the Pell Grant maximum award has increased from $2,340 to $6,195. Today, student aid enjoys strong bi-partisan support.
• Advocating for tax benefits, including 529 Plans, tuition credits and deductions, and deductibility for student loans, which have provided billions of dollars in tax benefits to help students and families afford a college education.
• Co-chairing the National Campus Voter Registration Project which, in each presidential and congressional election since 1996, has engaged the nation’s campuses in the political and electoral process. Creating CampusCares, an initiative to gain national recognition for the community service and civic engagement contributions by America’s colleges and universities.
• Creating the University & College Accountability Network (UCAN), a major national effort to enhance consumer access to comparative information on colleges and universities.
• Organizing a successful nationwide movement to eliminate unprecedented and intrusive regulatory language from Part IV of the Higher Education Act of 1992 (SPRE).

Taking a leadership role in the passage of the post 9/11 GI Bill, with its provisions for the participation of independent higher education through the Yellow Ribbon Program, which promotes college choice for veterans by providing supplemental matching funds to institutions that cover additional tuition costs for students. The bill has served as a model for how the federal government can promote greater affordability for students by partnering with colleges.

As president of Ohio Wesleyan he achieved significant growth and innovation in many key areas. This included increases in applications and retention, annual giving, faculty compensation, facility construction and renovation, and upgrades to dormitories, classrooms and laboratories. However, one of his lasting, and signature, initiatives was launching the National Colloquium, a major curricular/co-curricular innovation that annually explores an issue of national and international significance from multiple educational angles. To this day, the Colloquium forges links between liberal arts learning and the lifelong civic art of informed, involved citizenship.

Civic engagement and participation have been hallmarks of Warren’s career. In the 1960s, he organized and directed an Experimental College for Yale students and residents of New Haven. In the 1970s, he served on New Haven’s Board of Alders and the city’s Planning Commission. In the 1980s, Warren renovated a dorm on the Ohio Wesleyan campus for the purpose of intergenerational living and learning, starting with 62 apartments for students and retirees. Continuing through today, Warren remains the guiding force in helping colleges and universities register their students to vote through the National Campus Voter Registration project, which contributed to the increased student engagement and turnout for the past two decades.

However, one of his longest-lasting and most significant endeavors was creating the Summer Project initiative while executive director of Dwight Hall at Yale. The Summer Project, now over 50 years old, links Yale students and community organizations in innovative partnerships serving the surrounding communities.

Whether advocating and providing avenues for students and communities to embrace learning, community-building, and civic awareness or living the example himself, the values, experiences, collegiality, and lifelong benefits of higher education have been cornerstones of Warren’s professional and day-to-day life. They are key reasons for his continuing optimism in the human spirit.

Warren’s additional service to higher education includes holding a variety of positions at Antioch University, including senior vice president and university provost. He also held administrative and faculty positions at Yale University.

Warren earned a B.A. in English from Washington State University, where he was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. He earned master’s degrees in both divinity and urban studies from Yale University, and a Ph.D. in higher education administration from the University of Michigan. He was also a Fulbright Scholar in India and a Rockefeller Fellow at Yale.

From Washington State to Washington, D.C., Warren has seen the challenges facing private, nonprofit higher education up close and in-person for over 5 decades. No challenge has been too great, no hurdle too high. By developing appropriate strategies and forging coalitions to successfully implement those strategies, Warren has been a forceful, effective, and unapologetic advocate for independent higher education and the students and communities they serve.

Through it all, David Warren continues to see education as the great equalizer and remains The House Optimist. 
 
With more than 1,000 colleges, universities, and associations as members, NAICU serves as the unified national voice of independent higher education and reflects the diversity of private, nonprofit higher education in the United States.  Our member institutions include major research universities, church-related colleges, historically black colleges, art and design colleges, traditional liberal arts and science institutions, women’s colleges, two-year colleges, and schools of law, medicine, engineering, business, and other professions.
 

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The NAICU Board of Directors today announced that President David L. Warren, Ph.D, is retiring from the Association after 25 years, effective June 30, 2019.
 
Dr. Warren, who began his tenure as NAICU president in 1993, after nearly a decade as president of Ohio Wesleyan University, informed the NAICU Board of Directors of his retirement plans during its annual Fall Leadership meeting in Washington, DC.  Dr. Warren is just the third president in NAICU’s 42 year history.
 
“At every step in his professional life in higher education, a career that has spanned nearly five decades, David Warren has consistently put the needs of students at the forefront of his efforts,” said Andrew Benton, president of Pepperdine University, chair of the NAICU Board of Directors, and co-chair of the search committee tasked with identifying the next president. “During the past twenty-five years, David has been able to organize and mobilize an extremely diverse membership, one that has grown in every year he has been president, representing schools of all sizes and missions from around the country.  In a time of immense partisanship in Washington, DC, NAICU, together with its members, has been able to realize significant federal policy results for private, nonprofit colleges and universities and, more importantly, the students they serve.”
 
“It has been a true privilege to work with colleges and universities and to visit their campuses and meet with students,” said Dr. Warren.  “Together, we have fought to ensure that federal policy works in the best interests of our institutions and students.  I am proud of the fact that, working collaboratively with the National Association of Independent College and University State Executives, the NAICU Secretariat, our members, their students, others in higher education, and policy makers we realized critically important gains in federal financial aid, protecting the independence of our institutions, and achieving tax relief to help students and families afford a college education.”
 
Highlights of Dr. Warren’s efforts while president at NAICU include:

• Spearheading the Student Aid Alliance, an ongoing campaign of 86 higher education associations focused on expanding student aid.  Since its launch, federal spending on student aid has increased significantly, and the Pell Grant maximum has increased from $2,340 to $6,195.  Today, student aid enjoys strong bi-partisan support.
• Advocating for tax benefits, including 529 Plans, tuition credits and deductions, deductibility for student loans, which have provided billions of dollars in tax benefits to help students and families afford a college education.
• Co-chairing the National Campus Voter Registration Project which, in each presidential and congressional election since 1996, has engaged the nation’s campuses in the political and electoral process.  The 2018 midterm election reported the largest student turnout on record.
• Creating CampusCares, an initiative to gain national recognition for the community service and civic engagement contributions by America’s colleges and universities.
• Creating the University & College Accountability Network (UCAN), a major national effort to enhance consumer’s access to comparative information on colleges and universities. Today, there are nearly 600 college and university profiles in the national network.
• Taking a leadership role in the passage of the Post 9/11 GI Bill, with its provisions for the participation of independent higher education through the Yellow Ribbon Program, which promotes college choice for veterans by providing supplemental matching funds to institutions that cover additional tuition costs for students.  The bill has served as a model of how the federal government can promote greater affordability for students by partnering with colleges. 

“From his days as a campus leader at Washington State University to his presidency at Ohio Wesleyan and his leadership at NAICU, David Warren’s legacy as a visionary and effective voice and advocate for higher education is clear,” said Jo Allen, president of Meredith College, vice chair of the NAICU Board of Directors, and co-chair of the search committee.  “Few people have dedicated as much time, energy, and resources to the future of higher education as David.”

“David Warren is a remarkable leader,” said Ted Mitchell, president of the American Council on Education.  “Throughout his career, David has stood for the very best that American higher education represents. He has been a champion for equity and access, and has promoted initiatives that ensure that higher education remains an engine of social mobility. All of us are in David’s debt, and we will miss him dearly.”

The search committee, co-chaired by Benton and Allen, includes members of the NAICU Board of Directors’ executive committee and NAICU senior staff.  The search committee will work with a search firm to determine Dr. Warren’s successor.
 
“David has been the voice of America’s private, nonprofit colleges and universities in Washington for the past twenty-five years,” said Benton.  “We look forward to identifying the next person who will serve in that role, continue the policy work that has come to define NAICU’s excellence, and lead the association during the next phase of its history.”

 

Late last year, the Student Right to Know Before You Go Act (S. 2169/H.R. 4479) was introduced by Senators Ron Wyden (D-OR), Marco Rubio (R-FL), and Mark Warner (D-VA). All three have advocated for improved student data, and the latest bill seeks to use improved technology to bypass a central federal database in order to ensure that student privacy is protected. A companion bill has been introduced in the House by Representatives Duncan Hunter (R-CA), Andre Carson (D-IN), Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA), and Scott Peters (D-CA).  Thomas Rooney (R-FL) is also a co-sponsor. 

David L. Warren, president of the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities, issued the following statement on the proposal:

“For the past decade, there has been a protracted debate between privacy advocates and those who support the creation of a federal student level tracking system for purposes of educational evaluation.  A solution that protects student privacy while also providing more detailed insights into certain policy questions seemed elusive, at best.  The Student Right to Know Before You Go Act has the potential to make the assessments policymakers desire, but would do so without creating a permanent federal data repository on each individual U.S. student.

“NAICU believes it is essential to protect the privacy of students and their educational records.  For over four decades, the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) has guaranteed that students retain the right to control their own educational records. Under this federal law, institutions of higher education are subject to strict privacy requirements in their role as temporary custodians of student records. Congress should not take this essential control away from students and parents.

“There are still many unanswered questions about the feasibility of the new technology and the capacity of both the Department of Education and colleges to implement the system envisioned by the Student Right to Know Before You Go Act. But Senators Wyden, Rubio and Warner, along with Representatives Hunter, Carson, Fitzpatrick, Peters and Rooney, should be applauded for looking for an alternative that prioritizes student privacy. NAICU supports further exploration regarding the cost, effectiveness and feasibility of this new approach, and believes it has the potential to solve the privacy issues that have been central to our concerns with previous proposals.” 

David L. Warren, Ph.D.
President
National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities

WASHINGTON, DC  – John B. Wilson, president and CEO of the Association of Independent Colleges and Universities of New Jersey, is the recipient of the 32nd Annual Henry Paley Memorial Award presented during the 2018 Annual Meeting of the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities (NAICU).
 

John B. Wilson, president and CEO of the Association of Independent Colleges and Universities in New Jersey, accepts the Henry Paley Memorial Award from NAICU President David L. Warren, Ph.D., North Carolina Independent Colleges and Universities President A. Hope Williams, and NAICU Director of Outreach and State Relations Robert “Bo” Newsome.

Named for the late Henry Paley, president of the Commission on Independent Colleges and Universities of New York from 1975 until 1984, the Paley Award recognizes an individual who embodies his spirit of unfailing service toward the students and faculty of independent higher education.  The recipients of this award have set an example for all who would seek to advance educational opportunity in the United States.

Wilson has had a long and distinguished career working and advocating for New Jersey's private, nonprofit colleges and universities.  A native of Jersey City, he served as director of athletics and vice president of development at Saint Peter’s University (NJ) for 16 years, and assistant vice president of Seton Hall University (NJ) for five years, directing campaigns that collectively added more than $35 million to the infrastructure of both campuses. He also is one of the founders of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference.

In 1990, he moved to the Association of Independent Colleges and Universities of New Jersey (AICUNJ) and the Independent College Fund of New Jersey (ICFNJ).

Wilson quickly became an active member in NAICU and a tireless advocate for independent education. He became a familiar face in Washington, D.C., communicating the value of the private college sector and advocating for federal support to help fund institutions and students. He has regularly led presidential visits to Capitol Hill, working to bring the private college message to the influential New Jersey delegation.

Wilson has served as a member of NAICU’s Legal Services Review Panel (LSRP) for a quarter of a century, including the past three years as chairman. The LSRP evaluates legal issues affecting independent colleges and universities, and advises members on the implications of precedent-setting litigation. Wilson has played an instrumental role in guiding NAICU’s response to legal issues concerning free speech on campus, diversity in admissions, Title IX and athletics, campus security, taxation of college property, and the general challenges of intrusive and excessive regulation. The Legal Services Review Panel was presented the Paley Award in 2014.

He also is past chair of the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities State Executives and the Policy Analysis and Public Relations Committee (PAPR), the first state executive to chair one of NAICU’s standing committees. During his tenure on the PAPR committee, NAICU identified the six key characteristics of private colleges used in its communications: Diverse, Affordable, Personal, Involved, Flexible and Successful.

Wilson was the presiding officer of The Foundation for Independent Higher Education during its 2010 merger into the Council for Independent Colleges. Recently, he was tapped to serve as the interim board chair for the Coalition for College Cost Savings. Since joining the Coalition in 2011, Wilson has served in various capacities, including vice-chair of the board.

As president of AICUNJ and the ICFNJ, Wilson has worked tirelessly to raise funds that support scholarships and academic programs at New Jersey’s independent colleges and universities. During his 27-year tenure, the organization has distributed more than $46 million to advance the futures of students through scholarships and institutional support for the operating budgets of its members. Last year alone, ICFNJ awarded $409,900 in scholarships to 129 deserving students.

New Jersey’s 14 independent colleges and universities play a vital role in the state, with an economic impact of more than $3.5 billion annually, employing more than 18,000 people, enrolling 65,000 students, and awarding nearly 14,000 degrees each year.

In New Jersey, Wilson has worked to sustain the state’s support for private colleges which includes funds for direct operating expenses, financial aid, and capital expenditures. He has worked on the passage of six higher education bond issues, including the $750 million Building Our Future Bond Act of 2013 which provided $52.5 million in state construction bonds for private institutions.

Wilson has dedicated his career to advancing the New Jersey business community by helping to provide the skilled workforce that is central to economic growth. With STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) fields projected to continue to drive New Jersey’s economic growth for the next decade or more, employers are increasingly turning to the state’s independent colleges and universities for highly-educated graduates. To foster STEM education, ICFNJ sponsors the annual Undergraduate Research Symposium at Liberty Science Center, showcasing semester-long undergraduate research projects funded through ICFNJ. Wilson’s expertise ensures that these opportunities—which are so vital to the state’s economy—are available to talented students.

Building stronger New Jersey communities also is important to him. Wilson chairs the board at Liberty Savings Federal Credit Union and is immediate past chair of the New Jersey Alliance for Action, which represents 2,500 top corporate, labor, professional, academic and government representatives working to improve the state’s economy through the promotion of capital construction and infrastructure investment. He also is active with the Newark Rotary Club, and is slated to serve as Rotary District Governor in 2018. In addition, Wilson is a member of the capital campaign committee at Marist High School, a board member at Christ the King Preparatory School in Newark, NJ, and has served as secretary of the Sales Executives Foundation, supporting the M.B.A. program at Rutgers School of Business.

A longtime volunteer with the Boy Scouts of America, he was honored with the Patriot’s Path Council Lifetime Achievement Award. Other accolades include the Saint Peter’s University Distinguished Alumni Award, the Foundation for Independent Higher Education Outstanding Service Award, and the New Jersey Alliance for Action Richard Hale Chairman’s Award. For his 25th anniversary with ICFNJ in 2016, the fund created the John B. and Joyce Wilson Silver Anniversary Scholarship to recognize the outstanding accomplishments in higher education of Wilson, and the support of his wife, Joyce.

Wilson graduated from Marist High School in Bayonne, NJ, and attended the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, before earning an undergraduate degree from Saint Peter’s University (NJ), an MBA from Rutgers University, and a law degree from Seton Hall University (NJ).


Henry Paley Memorial Award Recipients
2018    John B. Wilson, Association of Independent Colleges and Universities of New Jersey and the             
               Independent College Fund in New Jersey
2017    William E. “Bill” Troutt, Rhodes College (TN)
2016    John Bassett, Heritage University (WA), Clark University (MA)
2015    Christopher B. Nelson, St. John’s College (MD)
2014    NAICU Legal Services Review Panel
2013    Bernard Fryshman, Association of Advanced Rabbinical and Talmudic Schools
2012    Patricia A. McGuire, Trinity Washington University (DC)
2011    The Rev. Charles L. Currie, S.J., Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities
2010    Sister Kathleen Ross, SNJM, Heritage University (WA)
2009    Morgan Odell, Association of Independent California Colleges and Universities
2008    The Rev. Theodore M. Hesburgh, C.S.C., University of Notre Dame (IN)
2007    Alexander W. (Sandy) Astin, Higher Education Research Institute, University of California
2006    Clare Cotton, The Association of Independent Colleges and Universities of Massachusetts
2005    Robert N. Kelly, Kansas Independent College Association
2004    Michael S. McPherson, Spencer Foundation, Macalester College (MN)
2003    James C. Ross, Commission on Independent Colleges and Universities of New York
2002    Allen P. Splete, Council of Independent Colleges
2001    (Special NAICU 25th Anniversary Meeting recognizing all previous recipients – no new award given)
2000    Sr. Mary Andrew Matesich, Ohio Dominican College
1999    David Irwin, Washington Association of Independent Colleges and Universities
1998    Rev. William J. Sullivan, Seattle University (WA)
1997    James Whalen, Ithaca College (NY)
1996    John Frazer, Association of Independent Kentucky Colleges and Universities
1995    Richard F. Rosser, National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities
1994    Sr. Dorothy Ann Kelly, College of New Rochelle (NY)
1993    Derek Bok, Harvard University
1992    (Special Summit Meeting – no award was given)
1991    Francis "Mike" Michelini, Association of Independent Colleges and Universities of Pennsylvania
1990    The Honorable Silvio Conte, U.S. House of Representatives
1989    The Honorable Thomas H. Kean, Governor, New Jersey
1988    The Honorable William H. Natcher, U.S. House of Representatives
1987    Frank "Sandy" Tredinnick, Association of Independent Colleges and Universities in Massachusetts
1986    James Ream, Pennsylvania Association of Colleges and Universities
1985    Rev. Timothy S. Healy, Georgetown University (DC)