Plenary Speaker

DR. ARNOLD MITCHEM President Emeritus of the Council for Opportunity in Education

Dr. Arnold Mitchem, President Emeritus of the Council for Opportunity in Education, has been a voice for low-income, first-generation students and individuals with disabilities his entire career. Thanks to his work, the federally funded TRIO Programs have expanded by nearly 400% and now serve more than an estimated 790,000 students at 1,000 colleges and universities.

He began his career on the History faculty at Marquette University in Milwaukee and was named the Director of the Educational Opportunity Program in 1969. He relocated to Washington, D.C., in 1986 to serve as President of the Council for Opportunity in Education until October 2013.

Dr. Mitchem has been awarded Honorary Doctorates from eleven universities — Lehman College; DePaul University; University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana; University of Liverpool, Marquette University; Marycrest College; University of Massachusetts Boston; Lewis University; St. Joseph’s University; Saint Louis University; and SUNY Buffalo State.