Arnold L. Mitchem is an American educator and executive who was the president and founder of the

non-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

Council for Opportunity in Education in

Washington, DC ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan ...

. He currently serves as President Emeritus for the organization. Mitchem is an advocate for equal access to post-secondary education and success of students in the United States—which he views as an extension of the

Civil Rights Movement The civil rights movement was a nonviolent social and political movement and campaign from 1954 to 1968 in the United States to abolish legalized institutional Racial segregation in the United States, racial segregation, Racial discrimination ...

. He is responsible for creating minority leadership for college access issues. Mitchem formulated the concept of “first-generation” students. This term best described students he sought to assist. It also moved access issues beyond racial boundaries to show that access to education was a more widespread problem in the United States. The concept of "First Generation" students was adopted in the re-authorization of the Higher Education Act of 1980.

Education

Mitchem received a B.A. in History and Education from the

University of Southern Colorado Colorado State University Pueblo (CSU Pueblo) is a public university in Pueblo, Colorado. It is a member of the Colorado State University System (CSU System) and a Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI). History 1933 to 1959 The idea for startin ...

(now

Colorado State University Pueblo Colorado State University Pueblo (CSU Pueblo) is a public university in Pueblo, Colorado. It is a member of the Colorado State University System (CSU System) and a Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI). History 1933 to 1959 The idea for startin ...

). He has a Ph.D. in the History and Philosophy of Education from

Marquette University Marquette University () is a Private university, private Society of Jesus, Jesuit research university in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Established by the Society of Jesus as Marquette College on August 28, 1881, it was founded by John Henni, John Martin ...

Awards

Mitchem has received honorary doctoral degrees from: *

University of Illinois The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U of I, Illinois, University of Illinois, or UIUC) is a public land-grant research university in Illinois in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana. It is the flagship institution of the University ...

, *

St. Joseph's University Saint Joseph's University (SJU or St. Joe's) is a private Jesuit university in Philadelphia and Lower Merion, Pennsylvania. The university was founded by the Society of Jesus in 1851 as Saint Joseph's College. Saint Joseph's is the seventh olde ...

DePaul University DePaul University is a private university, private, Catholic higher education, Catholic research university in Chicago, Illinois. Founded by the Congregation of the Mission, Vincentians in 1898, the university takes its name from the 17th-centu ...

* Marquette University * CUNY-Lehman College *

Saint Louis University Saint Louis University (SLU) is a private Jesuit research university with campuses in St. Louis, Missouri, United States, and Madrid, Spain. Founded in 1818 by Louis William Valentine DuBourg, it is the oldest university west of the Mississip ...

University of Massachusetts-Boston The University of Massachusetts Boston (stylized as UMass Boston) is a public research university in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the only public research university in Boston and the third-largest campus in the five-campus University of Massac ...

* Lewis University * Marycrest College He is the only American to receive an honorary degree from the

University of Liverpool , mottoeng = These days of peace foster learning , established = 1881 – University College Liverpool1884 – affiliated to the federal Victoria Universityhttp://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukla/2004/4 University of Manchester Act 200 ...

. Other awards include: * Alumnus of the Year Award from Marquette University, * Academic Advancement Program Leadership Award from

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California St ...

, * Outstanding Contribution to Higher Education Award from the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators. * A fellowship named after him at DePaul University.

Board positions

Mitchem has served on the Board and Executive Committees of many universities and organizations such as the Board of Trustees of Marquette University, the Advisory Panel of the Louisiana Board of Regents, Advisory Board of the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation's Community College Transfer Initiative, and the executive committee of the European Access Network. Mitchem has testified before the

US Congress The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is bicameral, composed of a lower body, the House of Representatives, and an upper body, the Senate. It meets in the U.S. Capitol in Washingto ...

on Education Regulations, non-profit institutions, and the Higher Education Act

Career

Before coming to COE, Mitchem served as the director of the Educational Opportunity Program at Marquette University. Mitchem has served on the Board of Trustees of Marquette University, the Advisory Panel of the

Louisiana Board of Regents The Louisiana Board of Regents is a government agency in the U.S. state of Louisiana that is responsible for coordination of all public higher education in the state. The Board was created under the terms of the 1974 Louisiana Constitution, and bega ...

, Advisory Board of the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation's Community College Transfer Initiative, and the executive committee of the European Access Network. Mitchem is a leading advocate for the federally funded TRIO programsU.S. Department of Education Office of Post-secondary Education
/ref> which help low-income and first-generation learners, students with disabilities, adult learners, and veterans overcome financial, social, and cultural barriers to education.

References

External links

ACA eNews for School Counselors, "4 Questions 4 Arnold L. Mitchem, Founder of the Council for Opportunity in Education"
Speech by Arnold L. Mitchem
at the Fifth National Conference on Black Student Retention on

KUT Kūt ( ar, ٱلْكُوت, al-Kūt), officially Al-Kut, also spelled Kutulamare or Kut al-Imara, is a city in eastern Iraq, on the left bank of the Tigris River, about south east of Baghdad. the estimated population is about 389,400 people. It ...

's "

In Black America Produced at KUT, ''In Black America'' is a long-running, nationally syndicated program dedicated to all facets of the African American experience. John L Hanson Jr. profiles a diverse selection of current and historically significant figures who ...

" radio series, January 1, 1990, at the

American Archive of Public Broadcasting The American Archive of Public Broadcasting (AAPB) is a collaboration between the Library of Congress and WGBH Educational Foundation, founded through the efforts of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. The AAPB is a national effort to digitall ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mitchem, Arnold Marquette University alumni Colorado State University alumni Education activists Living people Year of birth missing (living people) Educational researchers