Eduardo J. Padrón
Encyclopedia
Eduardo José Padrón is the current President of Miami Dade College
.
An American by choice, Eduardo Padrón arrived in the United States as a refugee at the age of 15. Since 1995, he has served as President of Miami Dade College
(MDC), the largest institution of higher education in Florida. An economist by training, Dr. Padrón earned his Ph.D. from the University of Florida
.
recognized him as one of America’s foremost educators. President George W. Bush
nominated him to the National Institute for Literacy Advisory Board. During his career, he has been selected to serve on posts of national prominence by four American presidents.
Internationally, Dr. Padrón’s accomplishments have been recognized by numerous nations and organizations including, among others, the Republic of France, which named him Commandeur in the Ordre des Palms Académiques; the Republic of Argentina, which awarded him the Order of San Martin; and Spain’s King Juan Carlos II, who bestowed upon him the Order of Queen Isabella.
Understanding," highlights the funding crisis that threatens access for low-income and minority students. Dr. Padrón has also championed innovative teaching and learning strategies and developed support initiatives to ensure student success. He was a member of AAC&U Greater Expectations national panel that re-examined baccalaureate education in the U.S. and the Woodrow Wilson Foundation’s Commission on the High School Senior Year.
Dr. Padrón’s transformational accomplishments at Miami Dade College have been acknowledged by the national media, including The New York Times
, Time magazine, The Wall Street Journal
, and the Chronicle of Higher Education.
He serves as the chair of the Association of American Colleges and Universities
and has been past chair of the League for Innovation in the Community College and the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities. He has held leadership positions, among others, on the boards of the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts; President's Advisory Commission on Educational Excellence for Hispanic Americans; Campus Compact
; Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute; and College Board. He has served on the boards of the American Council on Education
; Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching; Business-Higher Education Forum; League for Innovation in the Community College; RC-2020, an organization for large community colleges; Collins Center for Public Policy; International Association of University Presidents; the Business-Higher Education Forum; and the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta
. Moreover, beyond his focus on education, he has served in an advisory capacity to U.S. Secretaries of State Cyrus Vance
, Edmund Muskie
, and Condoleezza Rice
, and he was appointed to the Secure Borders and Open Doors Advisory Committee with Michael Chertoff
, the former U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security. As of September 2009, Padrón has served as a member of the Commission to Study the Potential Creation of a National Museum of the American Latino
.
In Florida, Padrón has served on several gubernatorial commissions and has lent his talents to numerous organizations including the Florida Humanities Council; the Florida Council of Presidents (Chair); the Council of 100; Miami-Dade Criminal Justice Council (Chair); Miami
Parking Authority (Chair); the Hispanic American League Against Discrimination (Chair); NAACP Miami-Dade (Vice-President); and Greater Miami United (Co-Chair).
Padrón is the recipient of numerous honorary doctorates and prestigious awards. The recent list
includes the "2008 Charles Kennedy Equity Award," Association of Community College Trustees; "2008 Reginald Wilson Diversity Leadership Award," American Council on Education; "2008 Innovator of the Year," League for Innovation in the Community College; Chair Academy for Leadership Development’s "2005 Paul A. Elsner Award for International Excellence"; Hispanic Magazine’s "2004 Hispanic Achievement Award in Education;" and the Association of Community College Trustee’s "2002 Chief Executive of the Year" award. He is a prolific writer with countless publications to his credit and serves on the editorial boards of The Presidency and University Business. In addition, he is a guest columnist for Hispanic Magazine and the Miami Herald.
He has been featured in People magazine as one of the world’s most influential Hispanics, in Hispanic Magazine’s list of most powerful Latinos, and in PODER magazine’s report on "Movers and Shakers."
Miami Dade College
Miami Dade College, or simply Miami Dade or MDC, is a state college with eight campuses and twenty-one outreach centers located throughout Miami-Dade County, Florida in the United States. It is part of the Florida College System. Miami Dade College is the largest school in the Florida College...
.
An American by choice, Eduardo Padrón arrived in the United States as a refugee at the age of 15. Since 1995, he has served as President of Miami Dade College
Miami Dade College
Miami Dade College, or simply Miami Dade or MDC, is a state college with eight campuses and twenty-one outreach centers located throughout Miami-Dade County, Florida in the United States. It is part of the Florida College System. Miami Dade College is the largest school in the Florida College...
(MDC), the largest institution of higher education in Florida. An economist by training, Dr. Padrón earned his Ph.D. from the University of Florida
University of Florida
The University of Florida is an American public land-grant, sea-grant, and space-grant research university located on a campus in Gainesville, Florida. The university traces its historical origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its present Gainesville campus since September 1906...
.
International Leader
Miami Dade College President Padrón is widely recognized as one of the top educational leaders in the world and he is often invited to participate in educational policy forums in the United States and abroad. In 1993, President Bill ClintonBill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
recognized him as one of America’s foremost educators. President George W. Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
nominated him to the National Institute for Literacy Advisory Board. During his career, he has been selected to serve on posts of national prominence by four American presidents.
Internationally, Dr. Padrón’s accomplishments have been recognized by numerous nations and organizations including, among others, the Republic of France, which named him Commandeur in the Ordre des Palms Académiques; the Republic of Argentina, which awarded him the Order of San Martin; and Spain’s King Juan Carlos II, who bestowed upon him the Order of Queen Isabella.
College Transformation
Padrón’s pace-setting work at Miami Dade College has been hailed as a model of innovation in higher education. He is credited with engineering a culture of success that has produced impressive results in student access, retention, graduation, and overall achievement. MDC enrolls and graduates more minorities, including Hispanics and African-Americans, than any other institution in the United States. He is nationally respected for his advocacy on behalf of underserved populations in higher education, and his in-depth research report, "A Deficit ofUnderstanding," highlights the funding crisis that threatens access for low-income and minority students. Dr. Padrón has also championed innovative teaching and learning strategies and developed support initiatives to ensure student success. He was a member of AAC&U Greater Expectations national panel that re-examined baccalaureate education in the U.S. and the Woodrow Wilson Foundation’s Commission on the High School Senior Year.
Dr. Padrón’s transformational accomplishments at Miami Dade College have been acknowledged by the national media, including The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, Time magazine, The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal is an American English-language international daily newspaper. It is published in New York City by Dow Jones & Company, a division of News Corporation, along with the Asian and European editions of the Journal....
, and the Chronicle of Higher Education.
Civic Leadership
Padrón’s energetic leadership extends to some of the nation’s most influential organizations.He serves as the chair of the Association of American Colleges and Universities
Association of American Colleges and Universities
The Association of American Colleges and Universities is a national association that is committed to improving undergraduate education and advancing liberal education as the preferred philosophy of education for all students...
and has been past chair of the League for Innovation in the Community College and the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities. He has held leadership positions, among others, on the boards of the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts; President's Advisory Commission on Educational Excellence for Hispanic Americans; Campus Compact
Campus Compact
Campus Compact is a coalition of college and university presidents, committed to fulfilling the public purposes of higher education. Over 1,100 educational institutions, more than a third of all higher education providers in the United States, are members....
; Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute; and College Board. He has served on the boards of the American Council on Education
American Council on Education
The American Council on Education is a United States organization, established in 1918, comprising over 1,800 accredited, degree-granting colleges and universities and higher education-related associations, organizations, and corporations....
; Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching; Business-Higher Education Forum; League for Innovation in the Community College; RC-2020, an organization for large community colleges; Collins Center for Public Policy; International Association of University Presidents; the Business-Higher Education Forum; and the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta
Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta
The Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta is responsible for the sixth district, which covers the states of Alabama, Florida, and Georgia, 74 counties in the eastern two-thirds of...
. Moreover, beyond his focus on education, he has served in an advisory capacity to U.S. Secretaries of State Cyrus Vance
Cyrus Vance
Cyrus Roberts Vance was an American lawyer and United States Secretary of State under President Jimmy Carter from 1977 to 1980...
, Edmund Muskie
Edmund Muskie
Edmund Sixtus "Ed" Muskie was an American politician from Rumford, Maine. He served as Governor of Maine from 1955 to 1959, as a member of the United States Senate from 1959 to 1980, and as Secretary of State under Jimmy Carter from 1980 to 1981...
, and Condoleezza Rice
Condoleezza Rice
Condoleezza Rice is an American political scientist and diplomat. She served as the 66th United States Secretary of State, and was the second person to hold that office in the administration of President George W. Bush...
, and he was appointed to the Secure Borders and Open Doors Advisory Committee with Michael Chertoff
Michael Chertoff
Michael Chertoff was the second United States Secretary of Homeland Security under President George W. Bush and co-author of the USA PATRIOT Act. He previously served as a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, as a federal prosecutor, and as assistant U.S. Attorney...
, the former U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security. As of September 2009, Padrón has served as a member of the Commission to Study the Potential Creation of a National Museum of the American Latino
National Museum of the American Latino
The Commission to Study the Potential Creation of the National Museum of the American Latino is an independent commission established by the federal government of the United States in 2008 to study the feasibility of creating a national museum dedicated to highlighting the contributions of...
.
In Florida, Padrón has served on several gubernatorial commissions and has lent his talents to numerous organizations including the Florida Humanities Council; the Florida Council of Presidents (Chair); the Council of 100; Miami-Dade Criminal Justice Council (Chair); Miami
Parking Authority (Chair); the Hispanic American League Against Discrimination (Chair); NAACP Miami-Dade (Vice-President); and Greater Miami United (Co-Chair).
Awards
Under Dr. Padrón’s leadership, Miami Dade College has received national recognition for its longstanding involvement with its urban community, its catalytic effect for social and economic change, and the marked difference it has made in student access and success through pacesetting initiatives. The most recent recognitions include: "2008 Exemplary Award for Improving General Education," Association for General and Liberal Studies; "2008 Chancellor’s Best Practice Award for Academic Affairs," Florida Department of Education; "2008 Green Cleaning Grand Prize," Green Cleaning Network; "2008 Fourth Best College for Digital Transformation," National Center for Digital Education; and, "2008 President George W. Bush’s Higher Education Honor Roll" for service to the community.Padrón is the recipient of numerous honorary doctorates and prestigious awards. The recent list
includes the "2008 Charles Kennedy Equity Award," Association of Community College Trustees; "2008 Reginald Wilson Diversity Leadership Award," American Council on Education; "2008 Innovator of the Year," League for Innovation in the Community College; Chair Academy for Leadership Development’s "2005 Paul A. Elsner Award for International Excellence"; Hispanic Magazine’s "2004 Hispanic Achievement Award in Education;" and the Association of Community College Trustee’s "2002 Chief Executive of the Year" award. He is a prolific writer with countless publications to his credit and serves on the editorial boards of The Presidency and University Business. In addition, he is a guest columnist for Hispanic Magazine and the Miami Herald.
He has been featured in People magazine as one of the world’s most influential Hispanics, in Hispanic Magazine’s list of most powerful Latinos, and in PODER magazine’s report on "Movers and Shakers."