Washington, D.C. – The American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU) has named former University of Maryland University College (UMUC) President Susan Aldridge as senior fellow, where she will join the nation’s leading academic thought leaders in creating and developing state university growth strategies, technology-mediated models of education and quality control systems for distance education. Aldridge’s work focuses on sustainable models for student enrollment and retention, as well as promotion of adult education, including opportunities for military members and veterans.

As UMUC president, Aldridge was responsible for delivering in-class and online academic programs to over 97,000 students in 28 countries and 170 locations worldwide. She expanded UMUC’s capabilities, including faculty support and student recruitment; managing a ground-breaking $26 million capital campaign; increasing student retention; improving metrics and data analytics; increasing partnerships for seamless community college transfer; launching new academic programs in cybersecurity and cyber forensics; and establishing new international locations and partnerships to foster academic diversity. During Aldridge’s tenure, UMUC became the largest state university in the U.S. and an award-winning leader in quality distance education.

In her new position at AASCU, Aldridge draws on expertise and unique perspectives from her wide-ranging leadership experiences in academia, government and private industry. She brings her passion for providing student access to quality learning opportunities to AASCU’s team, helping to fulfill the organization’s mission of sharing a historic commitment to underserved student populations and a dedication to research and creativity that advances economic progress and cultural development. “I’m honored to join the national leaders in public higher education at AASCU and its 420 member universities,” said Aldridge about her new role.

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AASCU is a Washington-based higher education association of more than 400 public colleges, universities and systems whose members share a learning- and teaching-centered culture, a historic commitment to underserved student populations and a dedication to research and creativity that advances their regions’ economic progress and cultural development.