Inaugural Presidential Ambassadors Council

Dr. Carolyn J. Stefanco, Inaugural Chair, Former President, CEO, Barét Leadership Consulting, USA 
Dr. Margee Ensign, President/Vice Chancellor, United States International University- Africa, Kenya 
Dr. Judy Genshaft, Former President, University of South Florida, USA 
Dr. Cheryl Green, President, Governors State University, USA 
Dr. Carl Jubran, President, Institute for American Universities, The American College of the Mediterranean, France 
Dr. Harvey Kesselman, President, Stockton University, USA 
Dr. Hilary Link, Former President, Allegheny College, USA 

Carolyn J. Stefanco, Ph.D. is a global higher education and women’s leadership expert. Following two decades as a tenured professor of history, she held positions as dean, vice president, and president in both public and private universities in the United States. She also served as resident director of a London Study Program, Senior Fulbright Scholar at the University of Zagreb, Croatia, higher education consultant for Saudi Arabia and South Africa, trustee and board chair at the American University in Bulgaria, and board member of the International Leadership Association and the American Council on Education Women’s Network Executive Council. While president, she founded a women’s leadership institute and raised millions of dollars in support of diverse women’s leadership. Along with the roles she has held in U.S. and international higher education, Dr. Stefanco is a sought-after speaker on women’s and diversity issues, publishes regularly in popular and scholarly venues, and serves on numerous boards. She was awarded a Helen Gurley Brown Foundation Genius Award in recognition of her decades of achievement.

Dr. Stefanco earned a Ph.D. in history from Duke University, an M.A. in women’s history from Binghamton University, and a B.A. in history and a women’s studies certificate from the University of Colorado at Boulder.

She founded Barèt Leadership Consulting (Barét) to help individuals and organizations to cross boundaries and to defy the odds. Named for Jeanne Barét, the first woman to circumvent the globe in the 18^th century who greatly exceeded the expectations of her times, Barét provides professional services in executive coaching, global engagement, and board development.

Dr. Stefanco leads the executive coaching practice, where she partners with accomplished professionals who seek greater clarity about current challenges and opportunities, higher levels of achievement, and advancement into more senior roles in higher education, nonprofits, and corporations. 

Dr. Carl Jubran is founding President of the American College in Southern France (ACM-American College of the Mediterranean) in the city of Aix en Provence. ACM is a liberal arts college with campuses in France, Spain and Morocco.

From 2012-2016 he served as President of the Institute for American Universities, a study abroad college founded in 1957 by American diplomats in France. From 2001 to 2011 Dr. Jubran was a tenured professor in linguistics and Vice Provost at the University of San Diego where he led the university’s internationalization efforts.

He holds two masters degrees in history and literature from New York University and the Sorbonne in Paris. He also holds a PhD in Comparative Literature from the University of California, San Diego.

He is fluent in Arabic, French Spanish and English. His research interests and publications include Mediterranean Studies, post colonial studies and the relationship between Europe, North Africa and the Middle East.

Dr. Jubran has worked extensively on several International Boards and organizations such as the World Affairs Council, NAFSA, the Forum and is currently the President of the AAICU (The Association of American International Colleges and Universities).

Dr. Margee Ensign assumed the position of Vice Chancellor of the United States International University—Africa after an extensive international search.  She came to USIU having been the President (Vice-Chancellor) of both a very old and distinguished university in the United States—Dickinson College—and a very new and pioneering African one—The American University of Nigeria. 

A native of California, Prof. Ensign earned her BA from New College in Florida and her Ph.D. in Economics and Politics from the University of Maryland, with a dissertation in Artificial Intelligence and Economics. 

Her distinguished career as both a teacher and an academic administrator has taken her to Columbia University, Georgetown University, Tulane University, and the University of the Pacific where she was Dean of the School of International Studies and Associate Provost prior to taking up her first university presidency.

In all these programs, she was able to pursue her interests in development, global and international education, and community development. The author of six books, she has worked as a consultant for several African governments, testified before the US Congress, has appeared on CNN and the BBC, is widely published in both academic journals as well as the popular press, and is frequently called upon to  speak at international conferences. She has received honorary degrees from the American University of Paris and New College in the U.S.

Professor Ensign was particularly drawn to USIU by its international character, its leadership role in African education, and its exceptional quality and promise.  She considers her greatest challenges to have been dealing with the refugee and educational crisis in NE Nigeria following the Boko Haram uprisings there, and with the Covid Pandemic crisis which necessitated the closing of Dickinson College and the rapid transition to on-line learning.  In both cases, building bridges between the university and the local community proved essential, and she looks forward to building similar bridges in Nairobi.  She believes that universities should be active and constructive member of their communities and nations.

She loves to play squash, is a fierce opponent, and she takes enormous pride in her daughter, Katherine, who has just completed her PhD at the University of Massachusetts.

Dr. Cheryl Green brings more than 30 years of professional experience in higher education to her role as the sixth President of Governors State University, and the leader of the Jaguar family. A passionate educator and administrator, Green believes fiercely in the power of education to change lives. Throughout her career, she has pioneered the innovation of academic enrichment opportunities and student success initiatives that promote increased retention and graduation rates for first generation and non-traditional college students. 

Most recently, Green served as Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs at the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh, as Interim Chancellor for the University of Wisconsin Whitewater, and as Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs at Tennessee State University. 

Before her time at TSU, Dr. Green served at Chicago State University in a variety of administrative and academic roles, including director/chair of the counseling department, inaugural dean of first-year students, acting associate director of career placement, and as a tenured associate professor of counseling. In addition, Green served as the statewide representative for 2,700 faculty and staff in her role as the Grievance Officer for the University Professionals of Illinois (UPI) Local 4100 for seven public universities. 

Her fiscal experience includes the budget management of more than $300 million dollars at three universities. Throughout her career she has served as the primary or contributing author for multiple grants which yielded more than $15million dollars in revenue. Most of her scholarly research has been focused on increasing student achievement and delivering community-based health initiatives for diverse student populations. 

Green’s commitment to making a difference is evidenced by her service to the community, which spans the United States and has included serving on ten different advisory boards or boards of directors. Currently, she serves on the Manchester University Board of Trustees, the Association of Governing Boards (ABG) Council of Presidents, the inaugural Presidential Ambassadors Council of the Association of International Education Administrators (AIEA), the Will County Center for Economic Development Board of Directors, and the Southland Development Authority Board of Directors. In the recent past, she has been active on the Howard Hughes Medical Institute STEM Grant Advisory Board of UW Madison, the Forward 50 Advisory Board for the National Association of Student and Financial Aid Administrators, and the Milwaukee based Gift of Adoption Wisconsin Board of Directors. 

Dr. Green is the proud recipient of Chicago Crain’s 2021 Notable Black Leaders and Executives, and the Illinois Black Hall of Fame has honored her as a Woman of First Distinction. She is a proud member of the Top Ladies of Distinction, Inc.-Will County Black Diamond Chapter and Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated®. In March 2022, Dr. Green was awarded the Excellence in Education award by the Central Regional Director of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated®, and in June 2022, she was recognized as one of The Top 50 Women Leaders of Illinois in 2022 by Women We Admire. In August 2022, she served as an Honorary Grand Marshal of the historic Bud Biliken Parade. Additionally, Newsweek recently featured Dr. Green in a profile that discussed the university’s 2022 ranking in U.S. News & World Report for being one of the top 25 best Midwest schools for social mobility. 

Green has a Ph.D. and master’s degree in counseling psychology from Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, Illinois. She obtained her bachelor’s degree in psychology from Manchester College (now Manchester University) in North Manchester, Indiana. She also holds several National Incident Management System certificates from the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Institute and serves as a recognized leader in grievance mediation and conflict resolution. 

Originally from Chicago, Illinois, Green is also the loving mother of two adult children who constantly keep her inspired to believe in the worth and potential of all human beings and to make a difference in the world.

Hilary L. Link, Ph.D., served as the first female President of Allegheny College — one of the nation’s oldest and most innovative four-year colleges where multidisciplinary learning breaks the conventional mold.  

In more than 20 years of experience across a broad range of institutions of higher education, she’s energetically built programs with the faculty and increased resources, while providing students with a cross-disciplinary path for preparing students to think critically, communicate creatively and question everything.  Recognized as a multidisciplinary scholar and globalist, she has served as Dean of Temple University Rome as well as Vice Provost at New York City’s Barnard College.

A visionary, dynamic and entrepreneurial leader, President Link saw Allegheny College over the finish line to become one of the first 10 U.S. colleges to achieve carbon neutrality. She was a member of the Climate Leadership Steering Committee of Second Nature’s Presidents’ Climate Leadership Commitment, signed by presidents of higher education institutions that are taking action on climate change and preparing students to solve the challenges of the 21st century.

President Link is the recipient of a variety of honors, including selection to the Stanford University Associates, the Elizabeth Deering Hanscom Fellowship in the Humanities at Yale University, and the Pi Mu Iota Award for the highest achievement in the Italian Department at Stanford University.  She served as a Presidential Fellow of the Association of International Education Administrators and was named Administrator of the Year by the Barnard College Student Government Association.

President Link sits on the board of directors of Highmark Inc., one of America's leading health insurance organizations, and Kallion, a nonprofit organization dedicated to developing better leadership through the study of the humanities.  In addition, she served on the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Honors Committee, which selects the recipients for several prestigious national awards presented at the annual NCAA Convention.  President Link is a member of The International Women’s Forum, an invitation-only global network of C-level women leaders with a common mission of advancing women’s leadership and championing equality worldwide, and an inaugural member of the Association of International Education Administrators (AIEA) Presidential Ambassadors Council. 

President Link earned a B.A. in Art History and Italian from Stanford University and her M.A. and Ph.D. in Italian Language and Literature from Yale University.  She and her husband have three sons, ages 19, 16 and 11. 

Dr. Judy Genshaft, During her historic 19-year presidency, from 2000 to 2019, she catapulted the University of South Florida System to statewide, national and international prominence for student success, academic rigor, research and innovation, and economic development. In 2018, USF received the elite designation of “Preeminent State Research University,” Also in 2018, USF was accepted into the distinguished Phi Beta Kappa honor society, In 2019, the USF Honors College was re-named the Judy Genshaft Honors College in recognition of a historic gift.

President Genshaft has been instrumental in economic development efforts in the Tampa Bay region, serving as chair of The Greater Tampa Chamber of Commerce, the Tampa Bay Partnership, the Greater Tampa Chamber of Commerce Committee of 100 and the Tampa Hillsborough Economic Development Corp. Nationally, President Genshaft has served as chair for the American Council on Education (ACE) and has been a member of the Association of Public and Land-Grant Universities (APLU) Board of Directors. In 2010, she made National Collegiate Athletic Association history when she became the first woman to chair the Division I Board.

President Genshaft earned recognition from professional organizations and community groups throughout her career. Her honors include: 2020 “Outstanding Floridian” by The Florida Council of One Hundred; 2019 Tampa Bay Business Journal Lifetime Achievement award; 2008 Tampa Bay Business Hall of Fame; Tampa Bay Business Journal's 2007 Business Woman of the Year; Greater Tampa Chamber of Commerce Dottie Berger MacKinnon Woman of Influence Award; Tampa World Trade Center's Betty Castor Lifetime Achievement Award; Florida Economic Council's Richard L. McLaughlin Award; and recipient of the Amiga Award for Non-Hispanic Women whose outstanding efforts have improved the quality of life in the Hispanic community.

President Genshaft also has received national and international honors, including: APLU's Michael P. Malone International Leadership Award; ACE Donna Shavlik Award; the Global Leadership Award from Her Royal Highness Princess Sirindhorn in Bangkok, Thailand; the Captain of Education Award from Hadassah College in Jerusalem, Israel; an honorary doctorate from Saint Ignatius of Loyola University, Peru; and was the first woman to receive an honorary doctorate in literature from Yeungnam University, South Korea. In 2016, Dr. Genshaft was honored by the National Association of Collegiate Women Athletics Administrators with the Dr. Claire Van Ummersen Presidential Leadership Award. She also received a 2019 Living Legends honor from the NCAA’s office of inclusion and human resources.

Together with her husband, Steve Greenbaum, she has supported a variety of programs at the University of South Florida including the USF Morsani College of Medicine, USF Athletics, Women In Leadership and Philanthropy, and the Arts. They have sponsored "study abroad” programs for hundreds of students from the Judy Genshaft Honors College. Judy and Steve are the proud parents of two sons, Joel and Bryan.

Dr. Harvey Kesselman, Leading under the guiding principle of “students first,” presides over Stockton University as its fifth President. With beginnings as unique as the university itself, Dr. Kesselman is the only sitting university president to have been in the inaugural class of the very institution he serves.

Throughout Dr. Kesselman’s more than four-decades-long tenure, he has successfully held leadership positions within virtually every major division of the university, including Provost and Executive Vice President, Interim Vice President for Administration and Finance, Vice President for Student Affairs, and Dean of the School of Education, making him the best-versed ambassador of Stockton University.  

At the onset of his presidency, Dr. Kesselman took immediate strides to strengthen the value of a Stockton degree. Under his leadership, the University achieved record-breaking growth in enrollment. Stockton's enrollment is currently almost 10,000 students.

Committed to advancing the University’s mission, Dr. Kesselman has successfully advocated for increased state appropriations, improved campus capacity, advanced University recognition and reputation, increased institutional giving, rededicated institutional commitment to shared governance and transparency, and developed stronger community and regional relationships. 

In keeping with Stockton’s firm commitment to Atlantic City and the surrounding community, President Kesselman secured a firm footing in the area, negotiating a monumental public-private partnership to build a multi-million dollar state-of-the-art residential campus and parking garage in Atlantic City, which opened in 2018.  Dr. Kesselman’s visionary prowess and collaborative nature has positioned Stockton University’s Atlantic City Campus to be not only an extraordinary anchor institution, but a major economic driver for the region and the educational capital of southern New Jersey. In 2018 Atlantic City’s City Council approved the creation of a new University District to support Stockton and help foster economic development in the surrounding neighborhood.  In 2020, the University broke ground on Phase II of the Atlantic City campus, a new Residence Hall for more than 400 students that is scheduled to open in 2023.

As one of New Jersey’s most prominent and highly regarded educational leaders, Dr. Kesselman’s sphere of influence reaches well beyond the local community.  He currently serves as chair of the New Jersey Presidents’ Council (NJPC), recently served as the co-chair of the student success working group for the NJ State Plan for Higher Education, and also sits on Governor Murphy’s  Dual Credit Commission. In addition, he has advised the New Jersey College and University Presidents' Council regarding accountability and assessment, and represented the senior public colleges and universities in the NJ Committee of Experts on Campus Sexual Assault Issues. In addition, he founded and chaired the SRI & ETTC Consortium, which includes more than 90 school districts throughout New Jersey.

Dr. Kesselman’s efforts in diversity and inclusion have earned Stockton national recognition. Known as a leading authority in public policy on higher education, President Kesselman was appointed by the American Council on Education (ACE) to serve as a member of the Commission on Internationalization and Global Engagement (CIGE).

Under Dr. Kesselman’s guidance, the university has received INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine’s Higher Education Excellence in Diversity (HEED) Award in 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2021, and the 2018 Inclusive Excellence Awards from the National Association of Diversity Officers in Higher Education (NADOHE). Stockton has earned national recognition as a front-runner in civic learning, community engagement and sustainability, receiving the American Association of State Colleges and Universities' (AASCU) Excellence in Innovation Award for Sustainability and Sustainable Development in 2016, for Civic Learning and Community Engagement in 2017 and for Regional and Economic Development in 2021. With a host of awards and many special recognitions, Kesselman’s efforts have advanced the reputation of Stockton University and catapulted the institution’s brand into the national arena.

President Kesselman received his doctorate in Higher Education Administration from Widener University, his master’s degree in Student Personnel Services/Counseling from Rowan University, his bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Stockton, and is a tenured Professor in Stockton’s School of Education, making him the most recognizable alumnus in Stockton’s history.