Molly Corbett Broad, president of the American Council on Education (ACE), has announced that David A. Jenkins, associate professor and chair of the Department of Social Work at TCU, has been named an ACE Fellow for academic year 2010-2011. David began his career at TCU as assistant professor in 1991. His research interests include families, family processes, and the impact of marginalization on clients, and exploring caregiving relationships in multiple birth families, grandparenting, and step-family relationships. He teaches courses on human behavior, addictions, and crisis intervention. He received his Ph.D. in social work from Florida State University and his B.S. and M.S.W. from Louisiana State University.

The ACE Fellows Program, established in 1965, is designed to strengthen institutions and leadership in American higher education by identifying and preparing promising senior faculty and administrators for responsible positions in college and university administration. Forty-six Fellows, nominated by the presidents or chancellors of their institutions, were selected this year following a rigorous application process.

Sharon A. McDade, Ed.D., director of the ACE Fellows Program, noted that most previous Fellows have advanced into major positions in academic administration. Of the nearly 1,700 participants in the first 45 years of the program, more than 300 have become chief executive officers and more than 1,100 have become provosts, vice presidents, or deans.

“We’re extremely pleased with the strength of the incoming class,” McDade said. “The Fellows Program will sharpen and enhance their leadership skills and their network, and prepare them to address issues of concern to the higher education community.”


Each ACE Fellow will focus on an issue of concern to the nominating institution while spending a semester with a college or university president and other senior officers at a host institution. The ACE Fellows Program combines retreats, interactive learning opportunities, campus visits and placement at another higher education institution to condense years of on-the-job experience and skills development into a single semester or year. The Fellows are included in the highest level of decision making while participating in administrative activities and learning about an issue to benefit Texas Christian University.

Fellows attend three week-long retreats on higher education issues organized by ACE, read extensively in the field and engage in other activities to enhance their knowledge about the challenges and opportunities confronting higher education today.

Founded in 1918, ACE is the major coordinating body for all the nation's higher education institutions, representing more than 1,600 college and university presidents, and more than 200 related associations, nationwide. It seeks to provide leadership and a unifying voice on key higher education issues and influence public policy through advocacy, research, and program initiatives.