ESU Trustee Elected PACT President

Posted by: admin on April 22, 2014, No Comments

Marcus S. Lingenfelter, of suburban Harrisburg who is a member of the Council of Trustees at East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania, has been elected president of the Pennsylvania Association of Councils of Trustees (PACT), which comprises the trustees from the 14 Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education universities.

Lingenfelter, who earned a bachelor’s degree in physical education and graduated with honors from East Stroudsburg University, is the executive director of state relations for the National Math + Science Initiative (NMSI), a non-profit organization established to scale up programs proven to improve math and science education. His primary role is to work with state officials to help facilitate the expansion of the organization’s K-12 and post-secondary programs in the 28 states where NMSI operates and to encourage additional states to participate in the initiative.

He previously was director of state government relations for the College Board, representing the non-profit association across the mid-Atlantic and New England states. Prior to joining the College Board, Lingenfelter held a variety of positions in higher education, including as a campus administrator, association official and educational fundraiser. In addition to his undergraduate degree from ESU, he has a master’s degree in higher education from Pennsylvania State University and has completed all of the coursework requirements for a Ph.D. in higher education, also from PSU.

Lingenfelter has served as a member of ESU’s Council of Trustees since 2010 and currently chairs the Council’s Academic Affairs and Enrollment Management Committee. He also previously served as the student trustee on the ESU Council from 1994 to 1995, making him the first former student trustee to lead the PACT organization.

PASSHE university trustees are appointed by the governor and confirmed by the state Senate. Most serve six-year terms; the student member serves from the time of his or her appointment until graduation. The 11-member councils have a wide range of duties and responsibilities, including making recommendations to PASSHE’s Board of Governors for hiring and evaluating the university president, setting the university’s annual budget, approving academic programs and setting room and board rates and other student fees.

All trustees belong to PACT, which provides professional development opportunities for its members by holding workshops and conferences throughout the year. The PACT executive board also meets regularly to discuss issues of mutual interest.

Other members of the executive board elected during PACT’s spring conference held earlier this month in Harrisburg are Richard L. Orwig, a trustee at Kutztown University, first vice president; Harold C. Shields, Edinboro University, second vice president; Eli Silberman, West Chester University, secretary; and William B. McIlwaine, Millersville University, treasurer.

The Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education is the largest provider of higher education in the Commonwealth, with about 112,000 students. The 14 PASSHE universities offer degree and certificate programs in more than 120 areas of study.

The state-owned universities are Bloomsburg, California, Cheyney, Clarion, East Stroudsburg, Edinboro, Indiana, Kutztown, Lock Haven, Mansfield, Millersville, Shippensburg, Slippery Rock and West Chester Universities of Pennsylvania. PASSHE universities also operate branch campuses in Oil City (Clarion), Freeport and Punxsutawney (IUP) and Clearfield (Lock Haven), and offer classes and programs at several regional centers, including the Dixon University Center in Harrisburg and PASSHE Center City in Philadelphia.