SAC President Search

Dr. Mark Curtis-Chávez

Forum Details: Monday, April 21, 2025, 9 - 10 a.m.

Location: SAC Nursing & Allied Health Complex (NAHC Room 218)

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Dr. Mark Curtis-Chávez serves as the Provost of College of DuPage, the largest single-campus community college in the state of Illinois. In this role, he collaborates with faculty, staff, community, industry, university, and K-12 partners to provide educational and workforce opportunities. Mark also serves on several national and local boards, including the National Association of Community and Technical Colleges, the American Association of Community Colleges’ Commission on Structured Pathways, and the Education Commission of the City of Aurora, IL. Mark is an Aspen Institute Rising Presidents Fellow.

With 20+ years of community college experience in teaching and leadership, Mark is deeply committed to the missions of open access, student success, and post-graduate economic success. In his leadership roles, growing enrollment has been a hallmark of his career, most recently growing enrollment more than 25% at College of DuPage. He has led these strategic enrollment management efforts to open doors of opportunity for all in the community. He has also been responsive to the community’s needs, building dual-credit programs and working with companies like Hewlett Packard and SAP to create new degrees and certificates. He has also built a Competency Based Education program, which led to many national presentations and consultations. Moreover, Mark has helped increase student completion and success through building such college-wide programs as Guided Pathways, corequisites, early alert, open educational resources, and bridge programs.

As the first person in his family to attend college and the son of a Mexican immigrant, Mark is living testimony to the democratizing power that higher education can provide. His work in community colleges began as an adjunct teaching English and then as a full-time professor, serving on the Faculty Senate, and more recently regularly serving on dissertation committees at the University of Toledo. He has worked in leadership roles at Arizona Western College, Cuyahoga Community College, Lone Star College, and College of DuPage—from Division Chair to Dean to District Office.

Mark has a PhD in Higher Education from the University of Toledo, an MA in English from Northern Illinois University, and a BA in English from Indiana University. Mark and his wife Aracely live in St. Charles, IL, with their sons Ulysses, Luke, Jonah, and Max.

Dr. Evon Walters, Ed.D.

Forum Details: Wednesday, April 23, 2025, 9 - 10 a.m.

Location: SAC Nursing & Allied Health Complex (NAHC Room 218)

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Dr. Evon Walters brings a diverse background of over 29 years of combined experience in teaching & executive leadership within Higher Education. His career reflects a deep commitment to increasing educational access, fostering equity, and building high-impact partnerships that drive student success and workforce development. A graduate of the University of Massachusetts, he earned his bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees while lettering in Track & Field. He is a 2003 Fellow of the American Council on Education (ACE) and was honored with the 2020 Paragon Award for New Presidents by Phi Theta Kappa, recognizing new community college presidents who demonstrate outstanding support for student achievement, engagement, and leadership. Earlier in his academic career, he served as faculty and chair of the education department at Olivet College, where he was honored with the prestigious Riethmiller Award for Excellence in Scholarship. He has held a wide range of executive leadership roles, including President, Campus CEO, and Vice President of Student Affairs and Enrollment Management.

A respected national voice in higher education, Dr. Walters has served on multiple commissions for the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC), including the Commission on College Readiness, Commission on Student Success, and currently, the Commission on Structured Pathways. He also served for eight years as a systems appraiser and evaluator for the Higher Learning Commission’s Academic Quality Improvement Program (AQIP). Widely recognized for his entrepreneurial, collaborative and data-informed leadership, Dr. Walters has led the design and implementation of high-tech, student-centered success and enrollment management models across three institutions— integrating workforce development strategies to increase access, retention, and career outcomes. His work has produced measurable results and earned national recognition (League of Innovation, EDUCAUSE and the Community College Review). While at Montgomery County Community College, he played a key leadership role in pursuing and securing the college’s selection as one of only 10 founding community colleges nationally chosen to participate in the John Gardner Institute’s prestigious Foundations of Excellence initiative, focused on strengthening the First-Year Experience.

At his current institution, Dr. Walters partnered with the National Association for Community College Entrepreneurship (NACCE) and the Verizon Foundation to establish at that time one of only five Digital Inclusion Centers in the country, targeting historically underserved communities. He also led the launch of the Verizon Innovative Learning STEM Achievers Program, designed to introduce historically under-represented middle school students to STEM pathways.

During his tenure as Campus CEO at the Eastern campus of Suffolk County Community College, Dr. Walters partnered with the central administration in leading a collaborative effort with faculty governance and union leadership to secure $40 million in capital funding for a new Learning Resource Center and Health & Wellness facility. This success is one of several that reflect his proven track record in securing alternative funding streams to advance institutional priorities and expand student opportunities.

A published scholar with over 150 citations, Dr. Walters also serves as a manuscript reviewer for the Journal of College Student Retention: Research, Theory & Practice. He continues to teach graduate-level courses in Higher Education at Stony Brook University, including Strategic Enrollment Management and Community College Leadership. His work has consistently championed the central role of community colleges in transforming lives through education and economic opportunity. His leadership efforts have consistently engaged partners across K-12, business and industry, and community-based organizations to build pipelines that expand access and promote success for historically underrepresented and economically disadvantaged populations. His contributions have earned numerous accolades, including the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Commission Award and the New York Governor’s Certificate of Recognition for public service and advancing diversity. Most recently, he was named a 2024 Man of Excellence by the New Pittsburgh Courier, honoring African American leaders for their service, integrity, and impact.

Dr. Walters is deeply engaged in civic leadership, serving as Vice Chair of the Northside Shore Chamber of Commerce, Vice President of Propel Charter Schools, and a member of Carnegie Mellon University’s Center for Shared Prosperity and the Northside Works Workforce Development Committee.

He is married to Rhonda Walters, Vice President for Talent Management at the Allegheny Conference. Their son, Evon Jr., will be attending Temple University in Fall 2025.

Dr. Francisco Solis, J.D.

Forum Details: Thursday, April 24, 2025, 9:30 - 10:30 a.m.

Location: SAC Visual Arts Center – Room 120

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Dr. Francisco E. Solis is the interim president of San Antonio College, the largest single-campus, accredited community college in Texas, serving 20,000 students and 1,000 employees who are committed to accelerating student success.

Dr. Solis is an experienced higher education administrator with over 23 years of service to San Antonio College. Dr. Solis retired from SAC in May 2023 and returned to the campus in March 2024 at the request of the Alamo Colleges District Chancellor, Dr. Mike Flores. He served as interim president from June 2022 to January 2023 and also served as Interim Vice President for Academic success before his retirement.

Dr. Solis has served SAC in a variety of teaching and leadership roles. Key positions included professor and coordinator in the mortuary science program, Director of Learning Assessment, and Dean for Performance Excellence where he worked closely with college leadership to design and implement the college strategic plan. Dr. Solis contributed to the writing and planning of SAC’s accreditation report to the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges. He has participated in many award-winning applications resulting in such major recognitions for SAC as the Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence, the Seal of Excelencia, and the Malcom Baldrige National Quality Award.

In addition to his roles at San Antonio College, Dr. Solis served as president of the American Board of Funeral Service Education, Chair of the Texas Education Consortium for Male Students of Color, and president of the San Antonio Chapter of the Texas Association of Chicanos in Higher Education (TACHE). Dr. Solis continues to teach as a Faculty Lecturer at the University of Texas, San Antonio in the Educational Leadership & Policy Studies Program.

Dr. Solis is a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin School of Law, St. Edward’s University, San Antonio College, and Central Catholic High School.

Dr. Lamata Mitchell, Ph.D.

Forum Details: Monday, April 28, 2025, 9 - 10 a.m.

Location: SAC Visual Arts Center – Room 120

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Dr. Lamata Mitchell has more than two decades of experience leading learning both at the Community College level and for industry. She has served in several roles such as Academic Dean, Vice President of Instruction, Vice Provost of Academic Affairs and, more recently, as Chief Learning Officer. She is passionate about identifying resources to close the equity gap for disadvantaged students.

In addition to leading collaboratively on college-wide initiatives such as Guided Pathways, Dr. Mitchell has provided academic direction in assessment as well as aligning the curriculum with program needs and supporting the development of new programs. She has extensive experience in strategic planning, accreditation preparation, ensuring the improvement of learning and completion rates. Dr. Mitchell believes in working closely with faculty and leadership to keep the academic focus engaged on student success outcomes that strengthens transfer opportunities and clear pipelines to employment.

Dr. Mitchell’s work on boards and committees underscores her professional and personal values. She has served on several committees including: The College to Success Arizona Advisory Council; The Achieve 60 Arizona Committee, which supports state-wide postsecondary education attainment for all able citizens; and The Global Education Commission of the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC), an appointment that allowed her to form relationships with other professionals equally dedicated to student success.

Dr. Mitchell holds a PhD in English from Northern Illinois University, a Masters in English from Andrews University, and a Masters in Publishing and Journalism from Loughborough University. She was recently an Aspen Presidential Fellow and a Thomas Lakin Institute Presidential Fellow. She has also completed several leadership programs at institutes such as the GE Management Academy, the John Roueche’s Leadership Institute as well as the American Association of Women in Community College Leaders Institute.

As a first-generation college graduate, Dr. Mitchell understands the challenges of navigating higher education. Her grandfather instilled in her the importance of a college education, despite his own lack of formal education, and he emphasized education’s power to open doors that would otherwise remain closed. Dr. Mitchell believes the Community College is a powerful tool for transforming lives and believes her purpose in life is to make sure everyone has access to a college education regardless of their background. As a leader, Dr. Mitchell is committed to helping people develop a growth mindset that motivates them to embrace their full potential. She loves meeting people, and she values the relationships she has built with friends from all around the world. Dr. Mitchell enjoys reading, traveling, and sketching in her free time.