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Strengthening Student
Success Conference 2026
Keynote & Plenary Speakers

Keynote and Speaker Information

We are pleased to announce that Dr. Ashanti Hands and Dr. Shaun Harper will be serving as the keynote speakers for Strengthening Student Success Conference 2026.

Select an option below:

Dr. Ashanti Hands.

Dr. Ashanti Hands

President, San Diego Mesa College
Dr. Shaun Harper.

Dr. Shaun Harper

Provost Professor, University of Southern California

Dr. Ashanti Hands is the President of San Diego Mesa College, one of California’s largest community colleges, serving more than 30,000 students annually. Throughout a career spanning more than three decades in higher education and community college leadership, she has remained committed to a simple but powerful question: What conditions must exist for students to thrive?

A champion of evidence-informed and people-centered leadership, Dr. Hands has helped advance a culture of inquiry that connects data to action, equity to accountability, and research to meaningful institutional change. Her work strengthens equity-minded decision-making, elevates student voice, improves student outcomes, and ensures institutional practices reflect the needs, strengths, and aspirations of the communities colleges serve.

Under Dr. Hands’ leadership, Mesa College has expanded access and opportunity through innovative pathways, student-centered practices, and a commitment to fostering belonging, including Health Information Management and Physical Therapist Assistant bachelor’s degree programs. Mesa has also earned recognition as a Black-Serving Institution and Parent-Friendly College and holds longstanding designations as a Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI), an Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-Serving Institution (AANAPISI), and a Veteran-Friendly campus.

Dr. Hands has served as a Strategic Advisor to The RP Group, is a lecturer in San Diego State University’s doctoral program in Community College Leadership, and is a founding board member of Nandi, a statewide organization dedicated to supporting and advancing African American women in California community colleges.

Dr. Hands believes that inquiry is not simply about measuring outcomes, but about seeing people, understanding experiences, and creating the conditions where success, belonging, purpose, and joy can flourish. Her leadership is grounded in the belief that joy is not the absence of challenge, but the presence of purpose, belonging, and possibility.

Over the past three decades, Dr. Shaun Harper has worked with hundreds of higher education institutions across America, including more than 80 California community colleges. Dr. Harper is a Provost Professor in the Rossier School of Education, Marshall School of Business, and Price School of Public Policy at the University of Southern California. He is also the Clifford and Betty Allen Chair in Urban Leadership, as well as the USC Race and Equity Center’s founder and Chief Research Scientist. He was named University Professor in 2022, a distinction bestowed to only 30 of nearly 4,700 full-time USC faculty members.

Dr. Harper has authored 14 books including Racial Equity and Campus Climate at America’s Community Colleges (Routledge, 2026) and over 125 academic papers published in the Community College Journal of Research and Practice, Journal of Higher Education, Review of Higher Education, Journal of College Student Development, Harvard Educational Review, and other top peer-reviewed journals. In addition, he has authored nearly 200 articles for The Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Forbes, Rolling Stone, The Chronicle of Higher Education, Inside Higher Ed, and other widely-read newspapers and magazines. Dr. Harper created the National Assessment of Collegiate Campus Climates, a suite of quantitative surveys that have been administered to millions of students, faculty, and staff across the country, including more than 60,000 participants at California community colleges.

Dr. Harper is the recipient of dozens of top awards in his fields and six honorary degrees (including a pair from Compton College and Long Beach City College) and has served as president of both the American Educational Research Association and the Association for the Study of Higher Education. He was inducted into the National Academy of Education in 2021 and has been repeatedly recognized in Education Week as one of the field’s 200 (top 1%) most influential scholars; he is currently ranked #3 overall and #1 in education policy. The New York Times, USA Today, The Wall Street Journal, Sports Illustrated, and several hundred other news outlets have quoted Dr. Harper and featured his research. He has been interviewed on CNN, MSNBC, ESPN, PBS NewsHour, and NPR.
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Speaker Type

Conference Year

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Keynote Speaker

Rafael Agustín

TV Writer & Author

2025
Keynote Speaker

Dr. Cynthia Olivo

President | Fullerton College

2025
Student Panel Moderator

Dr. Deborah L. Harrington

Dean of Student Success | Los Angeles Community College District

2025
Panel Speaker

Marvin Flores

Foothill College

2025
Panel Speaker

Frederick Hernandez

California State University, Northridge

2025
Panel Speaker

Ginger Mankins

San Diego State University

2025
Panel Speaker

Lovie Reece

Chabot College

2025
Panel Speaker

Adam Rodriguez

Skyline College

2025
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Keynote Speaker

Dr. Gina Ann Garcia

Professor, School of Education | University of California, Berkeley

2024
Panel Speaker

Hailey Ly

San Diego Mesa College

2024
Panel Speaker

Andrew Ortega

California State University, Northridge

2024
Panel Speaker

Nancy Ruiz

Madera Community College

2024
Panel Speaker

Robert Young

University of California, Los Angeles

2024
Keynote Speaker

Dr. John J. Hetts

Executive Vice Chancellor for the Office of Innovation, Data, Evidence and Analytics Office | California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office

2023
Keynote Speaker

Lizette Navarette, EdD

Executive Vice Chancellor for the Institutional Supports and Success Office | California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office

2023
Keynote Speaker

Dr. Amanda Tachine

Assistant Professor, Educational Leadership & Innovation | Arizona State University

2023
Student Panel Moderator

Pam Haynes

Board Member | California Community Colleges Board of Governors Vice President | Los Rios Community College District Board of Trustees

2023
Panel Speaker

Husna Ayoubi

San Diego Mesa College

2023
Panel Speaker

D'Juan Brundidge

Santa Rosa Junior College

2023
Panel Speaker

Gabriel Rodriguez

Porterville College

2023
Panel Speaker

Denisa Rozsypalova

Cabrillo College

2023
Keynote Speaker

Dr. Paul Hernandez

Senior Advisor to the President & CEO | Achieving the Dream

2022
Keynote Speaker

Dr. Tammeil Gilkerson

President | Evergreen Valley College

2022
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Panel Speaker

Tristin Beery

San Diego State University

2022
Panel Speaker

Iziaih Choquette

Los Angeles City College

2022
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Panel Speaker

Fábio da Costa Silva

Riverside City College

2022
Panel Speaker

Brandi Holcomb

California State University, Fresno

2022
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Keynote Speaker

Dr. Gloria Ladson-Billings

Former Kellner Family Distinguished Professor, University of Wisconsin–Madison

2021
Keynote Speaker

Dr. Keith Curry

President | Compton College

2021
Student Panel Moderator

Dr. Francisco Rodriguez

Chancellor | Los Angeles Community College District

2021
Panel Speaker

Trillia Hargrove

City College of San Francisco

2021
Panel Speaker

Coraima Martinez

East Los Angeles College

2021
Panel Speaker

Alexander Needleman

San Diego Mesa College

2021
Keynote Speaker

Dr. Russell Lowery-Hart

President | Amarillo College

2020
Keynote Speaker

Dr. Angélica Garcia

President | Berkeley City College

2020
Plenary Speaker

Dr. Julianna Barnes

President | Cuyamaca College

2020
Plenary Speaker

Dr. Kristi Blackburn

Interim Vice President of Pathways Innovation & Institutional Effectiveness| Los Angeles Community College District

2020
Plenary Speaker

Linda Collins

Founder and Executive Director | Career Ladders Project

2020
Plenary Speaker

Dr. Darla Cooper

Executive Director | The RP Group

2020
Plenary Speaker

Dr. Rowena Tomaneng

President | San Jose City College

2020
Plenary Speaker

Dr. Matt Wetstein

President | Cabrillo College

2020
Panel Speaker

Robyn Bolden

Student | University of California, San Diego

2020
Panel Speaker

Ruanne Catapang

Student | Los Angeles Pierce College

2020
Panel Speaker

Stephen Kodur

Student | Reedley College

2020
Panel Speaker

Sofia Zaragoza

Student | Los Angeles Pierce College

2020
Plenary Speaker

Dr. Cynthia Olivo

Assistant Superintendent/Vice President of Student Services | Pasadena City College

2020
Plenary Speaker

Dr. John J. Hetts

Visiting Executive, Research and Data | California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office

2020
Student Panel Moderator

Dr. Deborah L. Harrington

Dean of Student Success | Los Angeles Community College District

2024
Student Panel Moderator

Dr. Deborah L. Harrington

Dean of Student Success | Los Angeles Community College District

2022
Plenary Speaker

Dr. Deborah L. Harrington

Executive Director | California Community Colleges’ Success Network (3CNS)

2020
Plenary Speaker

Dr. John J. Hetts

Visiting Executive, Research and Data | California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office

2020
Panel Speaker

Dr. Keith Curry

President | Compton College

2020
Panel Speaker

Dr. Carole Goldsmith

President | Fresno City College

2020
Panel Speaker

Thuy Nguyen, J.D.

President | Foothill College

2020
Keynote Speaker

Dr. Sara Goldrick-Rab

Professor of Higher Education & Sociology | Temple University Founder | Hope Center for College, Community, and Justice in Philadelphia

2019
Keynote Speaker

Dr. Edward Bush

President | Cosumnes River College Founder | African American Male Network and Development Incorporated (A2MEND)

2019
Keynote Speaker

Tina Curiel-Allen

Student | University of California Davis

2019
Keynote Speaker

Dr. Victor Rios

Professor of Sociology, University of California, Santa Barbara

2018
Keynote Speaker

Dr. Veronica A. Keiffer-Lewis (Neal)

Organizational Equity and Cultural Humility Specialist | Allied Path Consulting

2018
Keynote Speaker

Alejandro Lomeli

Student | California State University Long Beach

2018
Keynote Speaker

Sonia Nazario

Pulitzer Prize Winner | Journalist

2017
Keynote Speaker

Chancellor Eloy Ortiz Oakley

Chancellor | California Community Colleges

2017
Keynote Speaker

Regina Stanback Stroud, Ed.D

President | Skyline College

2017
Keynote Speaker

Dr. Chris Benner

Professor of Environmental Studies | University of California, Santa Cruz | Executive Director of the Everett Program

2016
Keynote Speaker

Dr. Scott Evenbeck

Founding President | Guttman Community College

2016
Keynote Speaker

Linda Collins

Executive Director | Career Ladders Project | LearningWorks

2015
Keynote Speaker

Dr. Bob Gabriner

Co-Director | Leading the Middle—RP Group | Director, San Francisco State University Educational Leadership Doctoral Program

2015
Keynote Speaker

Dr. Deborah Harrington

Executive Director | California Community College Success Network (3CSN) | Dean of Student Success, Los Angeles Community College District

2015
Keynote Speaker

Michael Tubbs

Fellow & Lecturer, |Institute of Design at Stanford University | City Councilmember, Stockton, CA

2015
Keynote Speaker

Dr. Francisco Rodriguez

Chancellor | Los Angeles Community College District

2014
Keynote Speaker

Dr. Martha J. Kanter

Distinguished Visiting Professor of Higher Education and Senior Fellow | New York University

2014
Keynote Speaker

Darrick Smith

Assistant Professor of Educational Leadership, Department of Leadership Studies, Organization and Leadership | University of San Francisco

2013
Keynote Speaker

Ken O'Donnell

Senior Director, Student Engagement and Academic Initiatives & Partnerships | California State University Office of the Chancellor

2013
Keynote Speaker

Uri Treisman

Charles A. Dana Center | University of Texas, Austin

2012
Panel Speaker

La Shawn Brinson

Outstanding Program-Level Outcomes Assessment: Los Angeles Southwest College

2012
Panel Speaker

Fred Hochstaedter

Statewide SLO Champion: Monterey Peninsula College

2012
Panel Speaker

Julie Slark

Lifetime Achievement: retired

2012
Panel Speaker

Jerry Rudmann

Lifetime Achievement: retired

2012
Panel Speaker

Ricardo Diaz

Chaffey College

2012
Panel Speaker

Jim Fillpot

Chaffey College

2012
Panel Speaker

Sherrie Guerrero

Chaffey College

2012
Panel Speaker

Laura Hope

Chaffey College

2012
Panel Speaker

Cindy Walker

Chaffey College

2012
Keynote Speaker

Mike Rose

UCLA

2011
Keynote Speaker

Rebecca Cox

Seton Hall University

2011
Keynote Speaker

Jeff Duncan-Andrade, Ph.D

Assistant Professor of Raza Studies | Education Administration and Interdisciplinary Studies | Mandela High School |East Oakland

2010
Keynote Speaker

Frank Chong

Deputy Assistant Secretary for Community Colleges in the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Vocational and Adult Education

2010
Keynote Speaker

Donna McKusick, Dean

Developmental Education and Special Academic Programs | Community College of Baltimore County (CCBC)

2010

 

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