Dr. Tracy D. Hall Selected for the Prestigious Aspen Institute’s Presidents Fellowship

One of 25 Community College Leaders Selected for a Fellowship Focused on Improving Access, Completion and Post-Grad Success for Students

For more information, contact Diana Fedinec, Southwest Tennessee Community College Director of Public Relations and Media, at 901-333-4247 or dfedinec@southwest.tn.edu.

Southwest Tennessee Community College President Tracy D. Hall is one of 25 innovative leaders selected from across the country to participate in the second cohort of the Aspen Presidents Fellowship, sponsored by JPMorgan Chase. The Fellowship is a   unique yearlong professional development experience that helps community college presidents refine and reform their agenda to drive transformative change. 

“Community colleges educate millions of diverse students every year who are relying on them to deliver the education and credentials they need for a fulfilling life and career,” said Josh Wyner, executive director of the College Excellence Program. “I am delighted that these 25 accomplished presidents have committed to strengthening their institutions’ strategies to ensure that more students achieve those aims.“ 

The Aspen Institute’s Presidents Fellowship represents a powerful opportunity to reshape community college leadership and strengthen educational equity and excellence across the nation. Fellows will work with highly accomplished community college presidents, Aspen leaders, and each other to analyze their college’s outcomes and develop concrete plans inspired by field-leading practices. 

They will engage in a curriculum that will include exemplars from the field, data reports on available good jobs and student outcomes in completion and transfer, and qualitative reports about how well their current practices are aligned to what research reveals has led other colleges to high and equitable levels of student success. The program focuses on systemic reforms to improve student access, learning, completion rates, and post-graduation outcomes, drawing on over a decade of research by the Aspen Institute into effective community college leadership.

“I am excited to collaborate with my peers from across the nation to develop and implement new strategies that will directly benefit our students and community,” said President Hall. “It is an honor to be selected, and I look forward to learning and exchanging innovative practices that will help our students graduate and pursue meaningful careers.” 

Since 2015, Hall has served as the president of Southwest Tennessee Community College. Under her leadership, the College joined Achieving the Dream, prioritizing equity and student success through a redesign of its student-centered processes. This commitment led to the College being recognized as a Leader College of Distinction. In 2021, these efforts were honored with the prestigious and highly competitive Bellwether Award in the Planning, Governance and Finance category for transforming the student experience from recruitment to graduation. In 2023, Hall launched the Southwest Workforce Solutions Center, a revolutionary change for the College that integrated its workforce programs with associate degree programs featuring embedded certificates, significantly enhancing students' career pathways.

“We are incredibly proud of President Hall for being recognized as a national leader in community college innovation,” said Tennessee Board of Regents Chancellor Flora W. Tydings. “The Aspen Institute’s program for college presidents is one of the most prestigious fellowships in the country, and Dr. Hall’s selection and participation aligns perfectly with our commitment to providing students with the tools they need for academic and career success.”

This second cohort of Aspen Presidents Fellows reflects the country's diverse talent: 52 percent are women and 44 percent are people of color. They join a network of 375 fellowship alumni, 176 of whom are community college presidents today. Aspen connects and supports this growing network of community college reform leaders with opportunities for targeted professional development, research briefings, and convenings at national conferences. 

The Presidents Fellowship is made possible with philanthropic support from JPMorgan Chase through the firm’s New Skills at Work initiative, which aims to prepare young people for the future of work and meet the growing demand for skilled workers, and JPMorgan Chase’s $30 billion commitment to advancing racial equity and driving an inclusive economy.