FIU AVP of Enrollment Mgt. Joins NOVA as ACE Fellow for Spring 2022
Dr. Janie Valdés, assistant vice president for enrollment management and services at Florida International University (FIU), has joined NOVA for the spring 2022 semester as part of the 2021-2022 ACE Fellow cohort. Valdés is among 52 emerging college and university leaders to participate in the prestigious program.
Dr. Valdés will spend time with President Kress, Administrative Council members and other faculty and staff who oversee programming and supports for adult learners and transfer students.
“I am focusing on how NOVA supports adult learners, from credit for prior learning to on-boarding to student services. And, because my portfolio at FIU includes transfer students, I am interested in learning more about ADVANCE and Transfer Virginia’s equity-advancing work as well as sharing the great work that we do at FIU.”
Since its inception in 1965, the ACE Fellows Program has strengthened institutions of higher education by identifying and preparing more than 2,000 faculty, staff and administrators for senior positions in college and university leadership through its distinctive and intensive nominator-driven, cohort-based mentorship model. More than 80% of ACE fellows have gone on to serve as CEOs, CAOs, other cabinet-level positions and deans.
“The ACE Fellows Program challenges you to step outside your comfort zone, to spend time at institutions different from your own, to learn their contexts and to learn from varying styles of leadership,” Valdés said. “I think the benefit of that framework is that you become much more curious as a leader, you ask better questions. This of course allows you to meet challenges and opportunities with deeper understanding and greater authenticity.”
The daughter of Cuban exiles who left their country to seek a better life for their family, Valdés is a proud graduate of a community college and a public university. She wants to positively impact student access and success, regardless of where her career takes her.
“Along my educational journey, there were many people who saw my potential and nurtured me along the way,” she said. “My journey is unique to me, but the story is that of thousands of hard-working, intelligent and capable students at NOVA and many other community colleges. We cannot afford to lose that human capital, so my goal in any position that I hold is to develop systems and champion policies that help all students thrive.”
She continues, “At FIU, we are building capabilities to support adult learners, including expanding prior learning assessment options. I looked at several community colleges because they’ve been doing this work for decades. NOVA stood out immediately for its innovative workforce programming and strong ties to the communities it serves. After meeting with President Kress and learning more about her vision and observing her breadth and depth of knowledge in the areas I was interested in, and so much more, I knew NOVA was the right place.”
In 2005, Valdés founded “Transfer and Transition Services” at FIU. This unit serves the second largest transfer student enrollment in the nation, with nearly 10,000 new transfers annually according to U.S. News & World Report Shortlist (January 12, 2021). This highly focused and collaborative work resulted in significant improvements in associate degree transfer-in rates, retention and completion rates and transfer students graduating without excess credits, including through FIU Connect4Success, a nationally recognized transfer pathway.
Valdés is not unfamiliar with the Northern Virginia region. She holds a bachelor’s in psychology and a master’s in industrial/organizational psychology from FIU. But 15 years ago, she earned her doctor of education in human and organizational learning from George Washington University, spending much time at its Ashburn Campus. She says she loves the arts, sports and Ethiopian food. While she’s here, she plans to explore museums, attend college basketball games and search for the best injera. And when her 12-year-old godson visits, they will ferret out the best pizza in the region.
For more on the ACE Fellows Program, visit Acenet.edu.
Submitted by:
Kathy Thompson, Communications, KAThompson@nvcc.edu