President Livingstone Elected Secretary of the American Council on Education Board of Directors

WACO, Texas (Dec. 9, 2020) – Baylor University President Linda A. Livingstone, Ph.D., has been elected secretary of the Board of Directors of the American Council on Education (ACE), the major coordinating body for the nation’s colleges and universities.

During a webinar today with ACE members, Dr. Livingstone was elected along with Ronald A. Crutcher, president of the University of Richmond, who was elected as chair, and Michael Rao, president of Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU), who was selected as vice chair.

Dr. Livingstone was first elected to a three-year term on the ACE Board of Directors in December 2018. She will begin her one-year term as Board secretary in March 2021.

“ACE’s mission of leading advocacy efforts that shape effective public policy and foster innovative, high-quality practices to help colleges and universities best serve their students, communities, and the wider public good has never been more vital. We value the commitment of these leaders to help us fulfill this mission,” said ACE President Ted Mitchell. “I deeply appreciate the willingness of Ron, Michael, and Linda, along with the entire ACE Board of Directors, to serve in this role.”

​The American Council on Education (ACE) is a membership organization that mobilizes the higher education community to shape effective public policy and foster innovative, high-quality practice. ACE is the only major higher education association to represent all types of U.S. accredited, degree-granting institutions: two-year and four-year, public and private. ACE members educate two out of every three students in all accredited, degree-granting U.S. institutions.

The 15th president of Baylor University, Dr. Livingstone has overseen the development of Baylor’s academic strategic plan, Illuminate, which details Baylor’s pursuit of becoming a preeminent Christian research university, and the $1.1 billion comprehensive campaign that undergirds Illuminate, called Give Light.

A strong voice for the role of faith-based institutions in American higher education, Dr. Livingstone has established herself as a scholar in organizational behavior, leadership, creativity, and university accreditation. She has been extensively published and cited in academic and professional outlets, including American Business Review, Journal of Organizational Behavior, Journal of High Technology Management Research, and the book Business and Corporate Integrity: Sustaining Organizational Compliance, Ethics and Trust. She serves on the Board of Directors of Capital Southwest Industrials, the Board of Trustees for Baylor College of Medicine, the Board of Directors of ACE and the Board of Directors for Independent Colleges and Universities of Texas Inc. In addition, she was recently elected to the executive committee of the Big 12 Conference Board of Directors, for which she serves as treasurer.

Before joining Baylor as president, Dr. Livingstone served as dean and professor of management at The George Washington University School of Business, as dean and professor of management at Pepperdine University’s Graziadio School of Business and Management, and as a tenured faculty member and associate dean of graduate programs at Baylor’s Hankamer School of Business.

A native of Perkins, Oklahoma, Dr. Livingstone played varsity basketball at Oklahoma State University, where she earned a Bachelor of Science in economics and management, a Master of Business Administration, and a Doctor of Philosophy in management and organizational behavior. Her husband, Brad, a high school history teacher, also played basketball at Oklahoma State. They have one daughter, Shelby, a current student at Baylor’s George W. Truett Theological Seminary.

Dr. Livingstone was inducted into Oklahoma State’s Hall of Fame in 2019. She also is a member of the Spears School of Business Hall of Fame and was the first recipient of the Outstanding Ph.D. Alumnus Award. She was recognized in 2015 with the OSU Distinguished Alumni Award.

ABOUT BAYLOR UNIVERSITY

Baylor University is a private Christian University and a nationally ranked research institution. The University provides a vibrant campus community for more than 19,000 students by blending interdisciplinary research with an international reputation for educational excellence and a faculty commitment to teaching and scholarship. Chartered in 1845 by the Republic of Texas through the efforts of Baptist pioneers, Baylor is the oldest continually operating University in Texas. Located in Waco, Baylor welcomes students from all 50 states and more than 90 countries to study a broad range of degrees among its 12 nationally recognized academic divisions.