WPI President and CEO Dennis D. Berkey has been elected to serve a one-year term as vice chairman of the Association of Independent Colleges and Universities in Massachusetts (AICUM), the organization charged with preserving and strengthening the Commonwealth’s institutions of higher learning.
WORCESTER, Mass. – Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) announced that President and CEO Dennis D. Berkey has been elected to serve a one-year term as vice chairman of the Association of Independent Colleges and Universities in Massachusetts (AICUM), the organization charged with preserving and strengthening the Commonwealth's institutions of higher learning.
"WPI represents the essence of independent colleges and universities in Massachusetts," said AICUM President Richard Doherty. "Under President Berkey's leadership, WPI is educating a new generation in the disciplines critical to the Massachusetts economy, and it is partnering with Worcester to advance economic development in its host community."
Berkey has been president of WPI since July 2004 and is recognized throughout academia as a leader and innovator in higher education. His distinguished career includes 30 years of service as a faculty member, department head, dean, and provost at Boston University. Specifically, while at Boston University, Berkey chaired the Department of Mathematics, served as dean of Arts and Sciences, and twice acted as university provost, overseeing 14 schools and colleges, the Boston University Academy, the University Library System, the divisions of Extended Education and International Programs, research centers and institutes, and the offices of Sponsored Programs and Environmental Health and Safety.
"I welcome the honor of serving as vice chairman of AICUM," said President Berkey. "I have spent more than 30 years in independent higher education in Massachusetts. Both collectively and individually, the independent colleges and universities of Massachusetts make enormous contributions to the economic and cultural development of the Commonwealth, to profoundly important research, and to preparing individuals for productive lives and careers. AICUM provides important coordination and advocacy for these functions, and I look forward to the opportunity to serve in this capacity."
About AICUM
AICUM, founded in 1967, consists of 56 degree-granting, accredited two-and-four-year independent colleges and universities in Massachusetts. The organization’s objectives are to preserve and strengthen higher education; to help create a climate in which the resources of privately supported higher education may be utilized to the fullest extent by Massachusetts students and citizens; to address state and federal legislative and regulatory issues; to provide information about education and financial aid opportunities; and to bring about greater understanding of the impact and contributions of independent colleges and universities.
