Paul J. LeBlanc is the fifth and current president of

Southern New Hampshire University Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU) is a private university between Manchester and Hooksett, New Hampshire. The university is accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education, along with national accreditation for some hospitali ...

Early life and education

Born into a French-speaking family in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

, LeBlanc's family immigrated to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

when he was a child. He became the first person in his extended family to attend college. He enrolled at

Framingham State University Framingham State University (Framingham State or FSU) is a public university in Framingham, Massachusetts. It offers undergraduate programs as well as Graduate school, graduate programs, including MBA, MEd, and Master of Science, MS. History As ...

, where he earned his

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...

. He then received his

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

from

Boston College Boston College (BC) is a private Jesuit research university in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. Founded in 1863, the university has more than 9,300 full-time undergraduates and nearly 5,000 graduate students. Although Boston College is classifie ...

and his

Ph.D. A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is a ...

from the

University of Massachusetts Amherst The University of Massachusetts Amherst (UMass Amherst, UMass) is a public research university in Amherst, Massachusetts and the sole public land-grant university in Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Founded in 1863 as an agricultural college, it ...

Professional career

From 1993 to 1996, LeBlanc worked for Houghton Mifflin Publishing Company (now

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (; HMH) is an American publisher of textbooks, instructional technology materials, assessments, reference works, and fiction and non-fiction for both young readers and adults. The company is based in the Financial Dist ...

). He then served as the president of

Marlboro College Marlboro College was a private college in Marlboro, Vermont. Founded in 1946, it remained intentionally small, operating as a self-governing community with students following self-designed degree plans culminating in a thesis. In 1998 the colle ...

Marlboro, Vermont Marlboro is a town in Windham County, Vermont, United States. The population was 1,722 at the 2020 census. The town is home to both the Southern Vermont Natural History Museum and Marlboro College, which hosts the Marlboro Music School and Festi ...

from 1996 to 2003. In 2003, LeBlanc became the president of

(SNHU) in

Manchester, New Hampshire Manchester is a city in Hillsborough County, New Hampshire, United States. It is the most populous city in New Hampshire. At the 2020 census, the city had a population of 115,644. Manchester is, along with Nashua, one of two seats of New Hamp ...

. LeBlanc is a signatory of the

American College & University Presidents' Climate Commitment Started in 2006, the American College & University Presidents' Climate Commitment (ACUPCC) was a “high-visibility effort” to address global warming (global climate disruption) by creating a network of colleges and universities that had committe ...

and the

Amethyst Initiative The Amethyst Initiative is an organization made up of U.S. college presidents and chancellors that, in July 2008, launched a movement calling for the reconsideration of U.S. legal drinking age, particularly the minimum age of 21. The National Mi ...

. In March 2015, LeBlanc embarked on a three-month assignment to serve as a senior advisor to

Under Secretary of Education The Under Secretary of Education role was established as the second-highest-ranking position in the United States Department of Education when the agency was established in 1979. With the addition of a Deputy Secretary position in 1991, the Under S ...

Ted Mitchell. His focus was primarily on how the

Department of Education An education ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for education. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of Education, Department of Education, and Ministry of Pub ...

can establish better accrediting standards for

competency-based learning Competency-based learning or competency-based education is a framework for teaching and assessment of learning. It is also described as a type of education based on predetermined "competencies," which focuses on outcomes and real-world performance ...

and other innovations. ''

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 ...

'' describes LeBlanc as a leading advocate of competency-based learning. For his leadership at SNHU, LeBlanc has been named one of America's Ten Most Innovative College Presidents by ''

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 ...

''. ''

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also re ...

'' has listed him as one of its fifteen "Classroom Revolutionaries" and most influential people in higher education. In 2018, he received the TIAA Institute Theodore M. Hesburgh Award for Leadership Excellence in Higher Education. He is also a recipient of the New Hampshire State Merit Award from the

New England Board of Higher Education The New England Board of Higher Education (NEBHE) is an interstate compact that was founded in 1955, by six New England governors. NEBHE was approved by New England’s six state legislatures and authorized by the U.S. Congress. NEBHE serves t ...

, as well as the Entrepreneur of the Year Award from the New Hampshire High Tech Council, and was inducted into the ''

New Hampshire Business Review ''New Hampshire Business Review'' is a bi-monthly publication, published on newsprint and based in Manchester, covering business-related issues in New Hampshire. ''New Hampshire Business Review'' started in 1978, and was purchased from the Madde ...

'' Hall of Fame in 2017. LeBlanc serves on the

American Council on Education The American Council on Education (ACE) is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) U.S. higher education association established in 1918. ACE's members are the leaders of approximately 1,700 accredited, degree-granting colleges and universities and higher education ...

's Board of Directors, the

National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity The National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity (NACIQI, pronounced nah-SEEK-eeh) is an advisory body that makes recommendations to the U.S. Secretary of Education "on matters related to accreditation and to the eligibility an ...

(NACIQI), and the

National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (also known as NASEM or the National Academies) are the collective scientific national academy of the United States. The name is used interchangeably in two senses: (1) as an umbrell ...

's Board on Higher Education and Workforce. In July 2019, LeBlanc was appointed to the board of directors of

Chegg Chegg, Inc., is an American education technology company based in Santa Clara, California. It provides homework help, digital and physical textbook rentals, textbooks, online tutoring, and other student services. The company was launched in 2005 ...

, an American education technology company that provides textbook rentals and sells students solutions to their course assignments. In 2016, he was the second highest paid college administrator in New Hampshire with a salary of almost one million dollars.

Personal life

LeBlanc and his wife Patricia Findlen have two daughters, Emma and Hannah.

References

External links

SNHU Leadership
{{DEFAULTSORT:Leblanc, Paul Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Southern New Hampshire University faculty Framingham State University alumni Boston College alumni University of Massachusetts Amherst alumni Heads of universities and colleges in the United States