The Hidden Gem: Amplifying Community College Success

Alana Villemez

Alana Villemez is the founder & CEO of Most Likely to Succeed.

Anthony Cruz

Dr. Cruz currently serves as the Campus President of the Miami Dade College - Kendall Campus in Florida. During his twenty-seven years of higher education experience, Dr. Cruz has used his expertise to increase educational opportunities, enhance the student experience and bolster student success. Dr. Cruz is a native of Chicago, Illinois who grew up in Miami, Florida. Dr. Cruz works collaboratively with community partners to build pathways and remove barriers for students to thrive academically,

Anthony J. Iacono

Dr. Anthony J. Iacono became the third president of County College of Morris in September 2016. He is committed to the mission of community colleges because of their ability to change lives and strengthen communities. Dr. Iacono is convinced that the keys to success are rooted in faith, life-long learning, strong community partnerships, and understanding the responsibility of caring for others.

Blair Lee

Blair Lee is a higher-ed creative strategist, administrator and professor. By day he leads the Community College of Aurora’s marketing, public affairs and digital strategy efforts as the Executive Director of Strategic Communications and Alumni Engagement. He is also the host of the monthly education podcast Fulfilled: Your Inside Glimpse Into Higher Ed. Mr. Lee regularly lectures on funding disparities in higher education and writes frequently on institutional access, brand advancement and student success initiatives. Blair is a proud two-time alumnus of the University of Baltimore. He is currently pursuing his PhD within the School of Education at Notre Dame of Maryland University. You can follow him online on all social platform @TheHIgherEdCreative

Brian Messer

Brian Messer brings over 20 years of experience in overseeing various facets of university administration.

Caitlin Currey

Caitlin’s passion for storytelling is rivaled only by her pursuit of results.

Dan Baum

Dan Baum serves as executive director of Strategic Communications at Anne Arundel Community College (AACC), a nationally recognized two-year college near Annapolis, Md. Dan leads an award-winning team of marketing communications professionals who have helped strengthen the college’s reputation by developing and delivering integrated marketing communications that support student engagement and success.

Devin Purgason

⁠⁠⁠⁠Devin Purgason, is the Executive Director of Marketing & Student Care at Forsyth Technical Community College. He is passionate about students, equity, learning, and a nice cup of coffee.

Diane Burkett

Diane L. Burkett serves as the executive director of marketing and public affairs at College of the Mainland. Her diverse professional career, spanning across the public and private sectors in both higher education and software.

Dr. Melissa Curtis

Melissa Curtis brings a unique perspective to higher education consulting.

Dr. Stephanie Erdmann

Dr. Stephanie Erdmann is a higher education veteran with more than 20 years of experience in private, tribal, and public two-year and technical colleges in Wisconsin and Montana.

Edward Willey

Dean Edward Willey began his affiliation with Palm Beach State College in 1987 as a community education representative from Boca Raton Community Hospital (now Boca Regional) and as a member of the first Allied Health Advisory Committee on the Eissey Campus in Palm Beach Gardens. In 1989 he was hired as the first program clinical coordinator. During his almost 35-year tenure with Palm Beach State College, he has held numerous positions of leadership, including the positions of Coordinator with full time instructional responsibilities, Program Manager, Division Chairman, Associate Dean, Dean of Academic Affairs, Interim Dean of Health Sciences and Interim Provost. He was appointed Dean of Academic Affairs in 2000 and currently serves all five campuses as the District Dean of Health Sciences. He has earned both a graduate degree and undergraduate degree in Allied Health Science and Health Services Administration respectively and is a Ph.D. candidate in Education Administration and Leadership. At Palm Beach State College, he has served on numerous committees, including the PBSC Dental & Medical Sciences Project, Leadership Palm Beach County, Professional Development Committee, District Equity Committee, Palm Beach North Chamber of Commerce, Council of Instructional Affairs with memberships in National Council of Instructional Administrators, Florida Deans and Directors of Allied Health.

Eric Webb

Over 25 years of marketing experience has enabled Eric Webb to help improve the marketing strategies.

Eve Markman

Eve Markman is the Assistant Vice President for Brand Management and Operations at the Community College of Philadelphia (CCP).

John McGreal

John McGreal currently serves as the inaugural Dean of Enrollment Services.

Kaylan Gaines

Kaylan Gaines is a higher education professional with over a decade of experience.

Keith Paul

Keith Paul joined Northern Essex Community College (NECC) as Chief Marketing Officer in 2022 after serving as Director of Marketing and Communications at Springfield Technical Community College (STCC). He considers marketing a “contact sport” and brings more than 25 years experience to NECC spanning both the public and private sectors.

Lilian Clemente

Lilian Clemente is a marketing and communications executive with 15+ years of experience in higher education.

Lisa Slappy

Lisa Slappy is the Chief Communications Officer at Carroll Community College and began working at Carroll in 2022. In this capacity, she is responsible for building internal and external support, conducting public and community relations activities, and enhancing the visibility, image, and reputation of the College.

Martha Parham

Dr. Martha M. Parham is the senior vice president, public relations for the American Association of Community Colleges.

Maya Demischkevich

Maya Demishkevich is the Chief Marketing Officer at Carroll Community College and the host of The Hidden Gem.

Melissa Albright

Melissa Albright has over 10 years of successful experience in both sales and marketing in private industry and has 10 years of experience as an educator. As a community college graduate, she knows first-hand the positive impact community colleges can have on students and their families. She is dedicated to ensuring communities are aware of the life-changing benefits of attending a community college such as CCM. Through teaching and serving, she has grown to understand that everyone has their own life story and Melissa makes it her mission to create and cultivate a positive culture that leads to strong and effective team results. In August of 2020, Melissa joined CCM as the first Executive Director of Marketing and Public Relations.

Nancie McDonnell Ruder

Nancie McDonnell Ruder has dedicated her career to strengthening brands and the people who build them. With over 25 years of experience in marketing strategy, marketing training, branding and consumer research, Nancie has vast experience accelerating growth for companies by helping build their internal marketing strength – so external marketing efforts are focused and most effective. Nancie began her professional career with the Leo Burnett Company in Chicago, Illinois, where she spearheaded Leo Burnett’s global new business efforts. Since launching Noetic Consulting, a marketing and leadership consultancy in 2002, Nancie has provided strategic guidance to clients large and small, including: AT&T, Discovery Channel, Georgetown University, Nike, Vail Resorts, Samsung Electronics, SC Johnson, Mayo Clinic, the Walt Disney Company and others. Noetic is proudly female owned and WBENC-Certified as a diversity owned business.

Peter Toran

As idfive’s Lead Strategist, Peter applies his extensive experience in education marketing, nonprofit positioning and development, and institutional branding to various client projects. Before joining idfive, Peter served as the Vice President of Communications and Planning at the University of Baltimore for 13 years. While at the university, Peter supervised the university’s marketing, advertising, web relations, social media, public and media relations, crisis management, and special events.

Raven Haller

Rob Zinkan

Rob brings 25 years of experience in higher education leadership to the table.

Ryan Morabito

Ryan is a brand marketing expert with over two decades of higher education experience. He has partnered with 125+ colleges and universities in the development and implementation of long and short-term branding and marketing initiatives. He currently serves as a Senior Vice President at 5 Degrees Branding and runs his own consultancy, MarkEd, on the side. He’s an intentional and creative thinker, and a proven leader at delivering high quality market research initiatives, optimizing brand awareness, and developing strategic models that focus operational efforts and drive results.