A r c h i v e d I n f o r m a t i o n

          FOR RELEASE                          Contact:  Ivette Rodriguez           March 19, 1996                                 (202) 401-0262

Woods Named Education's Community College Liaison

Jacqueline E. Woods has been selected by U.S. Secretary of Education Richard W. Riley as the Education Department's community college liaison. The post, based in the Office of Vocational and Adult Education, was established to provide a communication link between the department and community colleges.

"For millions of students, community colleges provide an affordable and accessible means of getting the education needed for better jobs and brighter futures," Riley said. "As the nation's largest higher education sector, community colleges play a vital role in helping individuals prepare for entry into the workforce, upgrade career skills, earn technical degrees or pursue personal interests."

Woods has served as vice chancellor for external affairs at City Colleges of Chicago since 1993. Her areas of responsibility included governmental relations; external communications and public relations; resource development and grant management; community, business and corporate relations; and coordination of the college system's PBS affiliate television station.

Woods was vice president for institutional advancement at Community College of Philadelphia from 1991 - 1993, where she oversaw the college's publications and external relations and managed development and grant activities.

Woods has served the higher education community in Washington, D.C. for 14 years: as vice president for programs and public policy for the Association of Governing Boards for Colleges and Universities; as director of the Washington office of the American College Testing Program; and as program development director for the American Association of Community and Junior Colleges.

Woods was dean for resource development and vocational learning center coordinator for the Long Beach, Calif., Community College District and director of the educational program for opportunity and change at Kalamazoo Valley Community College in Michigan.

Woods has completed Ph.D. coursework and holds a Master of Education degree in speech pathology from Wayne State University in Detroit, Mich. Her undergraduate work was at Michigan State University in East Lansing.

She is active in numerous professional organizations and boards, including the American Association of Higher Education's Executive Board of the Black Caucus, the American Association of Higher Education, the American Association of Women in Community Colleges, and the Board of Advisors for the Community College Leadership Institute for New York University.

She is a distinguished alumnus of Michigan State University's National Black Alumni Association and is listed in Outstanding Young Women of America. She has been recognized for her outstanding service by such organizations as the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), the American Association for Higher Education's Black Caucus, the Philadelphia City Council and the Pennsylvania State Legislature.

Woods has published in the fields of testing and assessment, higher education leadership and speech pathology.