Lisa Foss, center, accepts the 2017 Council of Fellows/Fidelity Investments Mentor Award from the American Council on Education on behalf of the late St. Cloud State President Earl H. Potter III. Pictured are: Lynn Gangone, left, vice president, ACE Leadership; Nancy Blattner, president, Caldwell University, chair, ACE Council of Fellows; Molly Corbett Broad, president, American Council on Education; Lisa Helmin Foss, associate vice president and associate provost, St. Cloud State University; Alexandra Taussig, senior vice president, Tax-Exempt Market, Fidelity Investments; Sherri Lind Hughes, director, ACE Leadership. Photo courtesy of ACE
The award recognizes the role of mentors in the success of the ACE Fellows Program participants.
President Earl H. Potter III
Potter mentored one ACE Fellow and nominated two others to participate in the program. He also served as chair of the ACE Council of Fellows from 2013-15 and led the council through the program’s 50th anniversary commemoration. He served for eight years as an interviewer for incoming classes of Fellows.
Potter served as president of St. Cloud State from 2007 until his death in 2016. Accepting the award on his behalf was Lisa Helmin Foss, St. Cloud State University associate vice president and associate provost of Strategy, Planning and Effectiveness.
“Earl’s dedication to the Fellows Program reflected his longtime commitment to mentorship and helping pave a path for future higher education leaders,” said Lynn M Gangone, vice president, ACE Leadership. “It is terribly sad that Earl is not here to receive this well-deserved honor in person. However, I am confident that his legacy lives on and that his work has contributed to the development of leaders for generations to come.”
He served as president of St. Cloud State from 2007 until his death in 2016. Throughout his tenure, Potter was committed to the university’s mission of providing an affordable, high-quality education for students from Minnesota and around the world. He felt strongly about his work to prepare students for life, work and citizenship in the 21st century and established himself as a leader to position the university as a driving force for progress and problem solving in the region and as a source of great pride for the community and state.
“This is a fitting posthumous award for the late president Earl Potter III who was a great mentor to so many,” said Ashish Vaidya, St. Cloud State interim president. “Those he has inspired here at St. Cloud State are dedicated to continuing the great work he started by putting the student experience first.”
“Earl H. Potter III exemplified the values of a leader and mentor: dedication, integrity, compassion,” said Alexandra Taussig, senior vice president, Tax Exempt market, Fidelity Investments. “Fidelity is honored to celebrate leaders in the higher education community who share our passion for mentorship and are committed to preparing the next generation for ongoing success.”
Since its inception in 1965, the ACE Fellows Program has strengthened institutions and leadership in American higher education by identifying and preparing nearly 1,900 faculty and staff for senior positions in college and university administration. More than 80 percent of Fellows have gone on to serve as chief executive officers of colleges or universities, provosts, vice presidents and deans.
