Nicole Hurd is an American academic who became the 18th president of

Lafayette College Lafayette College is a private liberal arts college in Easton, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1826 by James Madison Porter and other citizens in Easton, the college first held classes in 1832. The founders voted to name the college after General Laf ...

Easton, Pennsylvania Easton is a city in, and the county seat of, Northampton County, Pennsylvania, United States. The city's population was 28,127 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Easton is located at the confluence of the Lehigh River, a river tha ...

, on July 1, 2021. She is the founder and CEO of College Advising Corps (CAC), the largest college access program in the country which aims to aid low-income, first-generation, and underrepresented high school students to enter and complete higher education.

Early life

Hurd attended Marlborough School in Los Angeles, and then went on to graduate from the

University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac, known simply as Notre Dame ( ) or ND, is a private Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, outside the city of South Bend. French priest Edward Sorin founded the school in 1842. The main campu ...

with a bachelor's degree. She then went on to

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private research university in the Georgetown (Washington, D.C.), Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789 as Georg ...

to earn her master's degree and afterwards earned a PhD in Religious Studies from the

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United S ...

Career

Hurd began her career at the

where she served as an Assistant Dean and as the Director of the Center for Undergraduate Excellence. It was at the University of Virginia where she created the College Guide Program which was the precursor to the College Advising Corps. Due to its initial success the College Guide Program received a $10 million grant from the

Jack Kent Cooke Foundation The Jack Kent Cooke Foundation is the largest scholarship provider in the United States. The private, independent foundation is dedicated to advancing the education of exceptionally promising students who have financial need. It offers the larg ...

which allowed it to expand into ten other states. After the expansion of the College Guide Program, Hurd moved to the

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States ...

to develop the College Advising Corps. Since its inception in 2005, it has helped an estimated 300,000 students enroll in college. Its goal of 1 million students is hoped to be reached by 2025. Due to its success, Hurd was honored at the White House in 2016 as a "Champion of Change for College Opportunity". In 2018, Hurd was awarded an Honorary Doctorate from

Franklin and Marshall College Franklin & Marshall College (F&M) is a private liberal arts college in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. It employs 175 full-time faculty members and has a student body of approximately 2,400 full-time students. It was founded upon the merger of Frankli ...

, and was recognized as one of ''

Time Magazine ''Time'' (stylized in all caps) is an American news magazine based in New York City. For nearly a century, it was published weekly, but starting in March 2020 it transitioned to every other week. It was first published in New York City on Mar ...

s Top 31 People Who Are Changing the South. She has also been recognized on ''

The Chronicle of Higher Education ''The Chronicle of Higher Education'' is a newspaper and website that presents news, information, and jobs for college and university faculty and student affairs professionals (staff members and administrators). A subscription is required to rea ...

's'' Influence List, and ''

Washington Monthly ''Washington Monthly'' is a bimonthly, nonprofit magazine of United States politics and government that is based in Washington, D.C. The magazine is known for its annual ranking of American colleges and universities, which serves as an alternat ...

's'' list of most innovative people in higher education. On July 1, 2021, Hurd became the 18th president of

Personal life

Hurd is married to her husband, Bill, who previously worked at

in the athletics department. Together they have two children.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hurd, Nicole 1970 births Living people Academics from Pennsylvania Presidents of Lafayette College