April 21, 2014
East Stroudsburg University trustee elected PACT president
Contact: Kevin Hensil, khensil@passhe.edu
Harrisburg – Marcus S. Lingenfelter of suburban Harrisburg (Susquehanna Twp.), a member of the Council of Trustees at East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania, has been elected president of the Pennsylvania Association of Councils of Trustees (PACT), which comprises the trustees from the 14 Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education universities.
Lingenfelter, who earned a bachelor’s degree in education from East Stroudsburg University,
is the executive director of state relations for the National Math + Science Initiative
(NMSI), a non-profit organization established to scale up programs proven to improve
math and science education. His primary role is to work with state officials to help
facilitate the expansion of the organization’s K-12 and postsecondary programs in
the 28 states where NMSI operates and to encourage additional states to participate
in the initiative.
He previously was director of state government relations for the College Board, representing
the non-profit association across the mid-Atlantic and New England states. Prior to
joining the College Board, Lingenfelter held a variety of positions in higher education,
including as a campus administrator, association official and educational fundraiser.
In addition to his undergraduate degree from ESU, he has a master’s degree in higher
education from Pennsylvania State University and has completed all of the coursework
requirements for a Ph.D. in higher education, also from PSU.
He has served as a member of ESU’s Council of Trustees since 2010 and currently chairs
the Council’s Academic Affairs and Enrollment Management Committee. He also previously
served as the student trustee on the ESU Council from 1994 to 1995, making him the
first former student trustee to lead the PACT organization.
PASSHE university trustees are appointed by the governor and confirmed by the state
Senate. The majority serve six-year terms; the student member, from the time of his
or her appointment until graduation. The 11-member councils have a wide range of duties
and responsibilities, including making recommendations to PASSHE’s Board of Governors
for hiring and evaluating the university president, setting the university’s annual
budget, approving academic programs and setting room and board rates and other student
fees.
All trustees belong to PACT, which provides professional development opportunities for its members by holding workshops and conferences throughout the year. The PACT executive board also meets regularly to discuss issues of mutual interest.
All trustees belong to PACT, which provides professional development opportunities for its members by holding workshops and conferences throughout the year. The PACT executive board also meets regularly to discuss issues of mutual interest.
Other members of the executive board elected during PACT’s spring conference held
earlier this month in Harrisburg are Richard L. Orwig, a trustee at Kutztown University,
first vice president; Harold C. Shields, Edinboro University, second vice president;
Eli Silberman, West Chester University, secretary; and William B. McIlwaine, Millersville
University, treasurer.
The Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education is the largest provider of higher
education in the Commonwealth, with about 112,000 students. The 14 PASSHE universities
offer degree and certificate programs in more than 120 areas of study.
The state-owned universities are Bloomsburg, California, Cheyney, Clarion, East Stroudsburg,
Edinboro, Indiana, Kutztown, Lock Haven, Mansfield, Millersville, Shippensburg, Slippery
Rock and West Chester Universities of Pennsylvania. PASSHE universities also operate
branch campuses in Oil City (Clarion), Freeport and Punxsutawney (IUP) and Clearfield
(Lock Haven), and offer classes and programs at several regional centers, including
the Dixon University Center in Harrisburg and PASSHE Center City in Philadelphia.