Leadership Institute
Speakers and Directors

Featured Speakers

Elaine Mariner is the Executive Director ofthe Colorado Council on the Arts, a stateagency that promotes the cultural, educationaland economic growth of Coloradothrough development of its arts and culturalheritage. Elaine oversees grants programsthat will provide almost $2 million in directsupport to artists, cultural organizations, schools and municipalagencies this year, impacting almost every county in thestate. The agency also provides services that help build thebusiness capacity of artists and organizations, such as strategicplanning and fundraising assistance.Elaine has served on grant review panels for the NationalEndowment for the Arts and the Institute of Museum andLibrary Services, as well as foundations and other state artsagencies. She is a trustee for the National Assembly of StateArts Agencies and serves on the Colorado Office of Tourism'sHeritage Tourism Committee and the Denver Center for the PerformingArts Education Advisory Committee.Elaine returned to the agency in July 2004, after servingfor four years as Director of Programs at the MassachusettsCultural Council. Prior to that, she was Deputy Director atthe Colorado Council on the Arts. She has a Masters in BusinessAdministration from the University of Colorado at Boulder. 

Dr. Marlene Ross directs the ACE Fellows Program, the nation's premier leadership development program that identifies and prepares leaders for senior positions in higher education administration. She oversees the recruitment and selection process for the program and organizes and teaches seminars on higher education leadership and administration. Ross is co-author of The Well-Informed Candidate: A Brief Guide for Candidates for College and University Presidencies, “So You Want to Be a College President” in Educational Record, and The American College President: 2000 Edition, as well as editions from 1998 and 1993. She also has written widely, conducted workshops, and served as a consultant to colleges and universities on numerous higher education issues. She served as project director for the presidential database, a longitudinal study of the backgrounds and career paths of American college and university presidents. She received her bachelor’s degree from Barnard College, Master’s from Harvard University, and Ph.D. from American University.

Stephen R. Portch, Ph.D. is Chancellor Emeritus of the University System of Georgia. Portch served as Chancellor from 1994-2001 during a transformative period for Georgia higher education, including a highly successful strategic plan. During this period, Change magazine selected him as one of the "21 Most Influential Voices in the Academy." Previously, Portch spent 18 years in the University of Wisconsin System, ending up as Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs. He was also a Professor of English, a Campus Dean, and a Chancellor in Wisconsin. Since 2001, he has been a higher education policy advisor, consultant, and speaker. His focus has been on Governance and Strategic Planning in states (such as Illinois, North Carolina, New York, Florida, Ohio,and North Dakota) and in both major public and independent institutions. Originally from England, Portch has an undergraduate degree from the University of Reading and a Masters and Ph.D. from Penn State. He is also a catfish farmer in Alabama.

Directors

Mark Alan Heckler, Provost and Vice Chancellor for the University of Colorado Denver, has been named the 18th President of Valparaiso University (Indiana) effective July 2008. He has completed the American Council on Education's Institute for Chief Academic Officers and Harvard's Institute for Management and Leadership in Education. Heckler has over 100 academic and professional productions to his credit, including performances throughout the United States, Europe and the Middle East. Other global initiatives have included international education development in China, Russia, Germany, Italy, Nepal, Mongolia and Taiwan. He was founding Dean of the College of Arts and Media at the University of Colorado Denver and has served ATHE in multiple leadership roles, including president.

Dr. Barbara Oliver Korner, Dean, College of Arts and Architecture and Professor of Theatre at Penn State University previously served as associate and interim dean of the College of Fine Arts at the University of Florida. She also serves on the Board of Directors for the International Council of Fine Arts Deans. She has been recognized as a distinguished alumna of the College of Fine Arts at Ohio University, where she earned a Ph.D. in interdisciplinary fine arts. She has completed Harvard's Institute for Management and Leadership in Education and has served as in several leadership roles for ATHE. She maintains an active role as a performing artist and is the writer and performer of Responding to the Call: African-American Women Preachers. With Carla Waal, she is the co-editor of Hardship and Hope: Missouri Women Writing About Their Lives.