Presidential Search

Alycia Marshall, Ph.D.

Dr. Alycia Marshall currently serves as the Interim President of the Community College of Philadelphia (CCP), where she has been a steadfast leader and advocate for student success. Prior to this role, she served as the College’s Provost and Vice President of Academic and Student Success for three years, overseeing Academic Affairs, Workforce Development, and Student Support and Engagement. During her tenure, she championed continuous improvement and professional learning by expanding professional development for faculty and department leaders, launching onboarding programs for faculty, department chairs, and directors that strengthened CCP’s culture of excellence.

Dr. Marshall’s career in higher education began at Anne Arundel Community College (AACC) in Maryland, where she built an exceptional record of leadership as a tenured Full Professor of Mathematics, Department Chair of Mathematics, and Associate Vice President for Learning and Academic Affairs. She earned her Ph.D. in Mathematics Education from the University of Maryland, College Park, a Master of Arts in Teaching from Bowie State University, and a Bachelor of Arts in Mathematics from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County.

A nationally recognized thought leader, Dr. Marshall is an Aspen Rising Presidents Fellow (2023) and was one of the Charles A. Dana Center’s inaugural Mathematics Pathways Leadership Fellows (2016). Her contributions to education and equity have been celebrated with numerous awards, including the Verizon Community Innovator Award (2013), the INSIGHT Into Diversity Magazine “100 Inspiring Women in STEM Award” (2015), the National Faculty Role Model Award from Minority Access, Inc. (2015), the John and Suanne Roueche Excellence Award (2017), the League Excellence Award from the League for Innovation in the Community College (2021), and the President’s Award of Excellence (2025) from the Philadelphia Association of Black Journalists.

Her influence extends well beyond her home institutions. She has played a pivotal role in shaping national conversations about mathematics education, serving as co-lead of the Lower Division Pathways Mathematics Advisory Group (MAG) for TPSE Math (Transforming Post-Secondary Education in Mathematics) and as a member of the Carnegie Math Pathways Steering Committee. Dr. Marshall is also engaged in regional strategy work and conversations around higher education and workforce development needs in Philadelphia currently serving on the Philadelphia Works Board of Directors, Philadelphia Eds and Meds Collaborative Executive Leadership Committee, Roadmap to Quality Jobs Steering Committee, Economy League of Greater Philadelphia Board and Higher Academia Task Force. Through these efforts, Dr. Marshall has joined a distinguished network of regional and national leaders creating more equitable pathways to economic mobility for students across the country and abroad.

Equally passionate about leadership development, Dr. Marshall has dedicated her career to mentoring and supporting the next generation of leaders. She is the founder and visionary of AACC’s inaugural African American Leadership Institute and spearheaded the creation of the Aspiring Leaders Fellowship Program at CCP. This fellowship has served participants at both the Community College of Philadelphia and Montgomery County Community College, fostering leadership skills and mentorship for emerging leaders who will shape the future of higher education.

Dr. Lisa Cooper Wilkins

Dr. Lisa Cooper Wilkins has cultivated a distinguished career of service with an emphasis on access, equity, inclusion, belonging, and student success. A culturally responsive and student-centered leader, she is deeply committed to the transformational power of community colleges and the multiple pathways they create for students to achieve academic, career, and life success.

With more than 25 years of higher education leadership experience, Dr. Cooper Wilkins has served in roles spanning faculty, counseling, department chair, director, dean, and executive-level administration across both two- and four-year, public and private institutions. Since 2020, she has served as Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs at City College of San Francisco, where she provides executive oversight for enrollment services, financial aid, student equity programs, and a range of holistic student supports impacting more than 50,000 students annually. In this role, she co-authored the College’s Strategic Enrollment Management Plan (2024–2026), launched a new Student Success Center, and expanded basic needs and financial literacy programs through the SparkPoint CCSF/Basic Needs Center. Under her leadership, CCSF’s nationally recognized Free City College Promise Program, developed in partnership with the City of San Francisco, experienced an increase in enrollment growth in just two years, with an emphasis on first-generation and underrepresented students.

Previously, Dr. Cooper Wilkins served as Assistant Superintendent/Vice President of Student Services at San Joaquin Delta College (2015–2020), where she advanced Guided Pathways implementation and oversaw enrollment, equity, and student support divisions. At the University of the Pacific, she strengthened diversity and student life initiatives as Associate Vice President for Student Life, and Interim Assistant Provost for Diversity. Earlier in her career, she served as Dean of Educational Support Services in Academic Affairs at the Community College of Philadelphia, deepening her understanding of the College’s mission and its critical role in transforming lives in an urban setting.

Her leadership is recognized nationally. She currently serves as President of the Umoja Community Education Foundation Board of Directors (2025–2027), advancing Umoja’s mission to support students of African descent, and as a Board Member for NASPA Advisory Services, helping institutions across the country strengthen organizational effectiveness. She also contributes her expertise as a Peer Reviewer for the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC), supporting institutions in accreditation, institutional effectiveness, and continuous improvement.

Dr. Cooper Wilkins’ contributions have been recognized with numerous honors, including the 2024 NASPA Scott Goodnight Award for Outstanding Performance as a Dean/Vice President of Student Affairs, the 2024 ACPA Senior-Level Professional Award, the 2018 San Joaquin Pride Center Education Champion Award, and the 2017 NAACP Medgar Evers Freedom Fighter Award.

A dedicated scholar-practitioner, Dr. Cooper Wilkins earned her doctorate in Higher Education Administration from The George Washington University, where her research focused on disability as diversity. She is an Aspen Presidential Fellow, a Lakin Institute Fellow, and a Senior Fellow with the American Leadership Forum. She remains active in public service prioritizing mentorship, early literacy initiatives, fundraising, and scholarship support for college-bound students.

Jesse Pisors, Ed.D.

Dr. Jesse Pisors has dedicated 27 years to educational leadership, with executive experience at every level, from K-12 schools to universities. Until recently, he served as President of Pasco-Hernando State College, a five-campus community college in Florida with 1,000 part and full-time faculty and staff and nearly 10,000 students pursuing certificate, associate and bachelor’s degree programs.

Previously, Dr. Pisors spent over eight years as a Vice President in the University of Houston and Texas A&M University Systems, where he directed fundraising, external relations, grants, marketing and communications. He has extensive experience leading major fundraising campaigns; securing large gifts and grants; and successfully advocating for institutional priorities at city, county and state levels. He has overseen marketing, communications and public relations efforts that have led to significant enrollment growth and philanthropic outcomes.

He also has classroom teaching experience, having taught humanities, history and public speaking as an adjunct instructor at middle school, high school, community college and university levels.

Dr. Pisors led a school in Mexico for three years early in his career. This experience, along with the influence of his wife (who he met when she was an international student from Mexico), has given him fluency in Spanish and a profound appreciation for Hispanic culture and diverse communities. Jesse and Nayeli have two adult children and have enjoyed hosting international students from Venezuela, Mexico, India, South Korea and Thailand in their bilingual and multicultural home.

Dr. Pisors is a high-energy entrepreneurial leader who prioritizes student success, collaborative leadership, sincere relationships and visible engagement on campus and in the community. He is eager to bring his unique combination of presidential, advancement and advocacy experience to Community College of Philadelphia, ready to make a long-term commitment to serving the City and its students.

Dr. Jermaine Wright

Dr. Jermaine Wright brings 20 years of experience in public higher education and workforce development, with a career defined by his commitment to access, equity, and student success. He currently serves as Vice President for Student Affairs at Lehman College, a senior liberal arts college in the Bronx, part of the City University of New York (CUNY). In this role, Dr. Wright provides visionary leadership and strategic oversight for a comprehensive portfolio of student-centered programs and services that align with Lehman College’s mission of advancing equity and fostering student achievement. Under his leadership, Lehman has cultivated impactful collaborations with the Hispanic Federation and the U.S. Department of Justice Office on Violence Against Women, while advancing key initiatives such as the Constructive Dialogue Institute, CUNY Academic Momentum 2.0, CUNY CARES, and the CUNY Inclusive Economy. Most recently, he led the implementation of initiatives to embed career readiness across undergraduate programs and strengthen pathways from college to the workforce.

Before joining Lehman, Dr. Wright served as Associate Vice President for Student Affairs at Southern Connecticut State University (SCSU) in New Haven, CT. There, he oversaw a broad range of engagement and retention programs and delivered measurable gains in student success and persistence. As chair of the Structured Enrollment Management Plan Hispanic and African American Working Group, he strengthened recruitment and retention strategies for Black and Latinx students. Among his key accomplishments at SCSU were the creation of a faculty mentoring program for underrepresented students, a commuter student success initiative, and the development of a comprehensive student success framework to boost retention and 4-year graduation rates. Dr. Wright also played a critical role in institutional planning, serving on the President’s Strategic Planning Committee and contributing to the New England Commission on Higher Education (NECHE) accreditation process.

Earlier in his career, Dr. Wright served in several senior leadership roles at the CUNY Central Office, including Interim University Associate Dean of Special Programs, where he managed a $42 million budget supporting more than 25,000 students through Search for Education, Elevation, and Knowledge (SEEK) program, College Discovery program, CUNY Black Male Initiative (BMI), TRIO, and the Foster Youth College Initiative. He also served as Director and founding University Associate Director of CUNY BMI, advancing one of the largest student success initiatives for men of color in the nation. His work prior to CUNY included serving as Regional Program Manager for the Urban Youth Empowerment Program at the National Urban League, a historic non-profit civil rights organization, where he helped expand workforce opportunities for underserved populations nationwide. He has taught undergraduate and graduate courses as an adjunct faculty member at Mercy University and Rutgers University–Newark and currently teaches in the Political Science Department at Lehman College.

Dr. Wright earned a B.A. in Political Science from Binghamton University, a Master of Public Administration from John Jay College of Criminal Justice/CUNY, and a Ph.D. in Public Administration with an emphasis on performance measurement and improvement from Rutgers University-Newark. He is also a graduate of the Institute of Higher Education at Harvard University Management Development Program and the American Association of State Colleges and Universities Millennium Leadership Initiative.