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150 Most Influential Women of West Chester University

In 2021, the President's Commission on the Status of Women decided to celebrate the 150th Anniversary of West Chester University by celebrating 150 special women. We asked students, staff, faculty, alumni, and community members to nominate those women who, at this moment in time, represent the Most Influential Women of West Chester University. Over 350 nominations were submitted. After careful consideration, collaboration with other areas, and extensive research, the Commission is proud to present our 150 honorees.

A short ceremony was held on April 22, 2022 to honor the 150 Most Influential Women of West Chester University

Group of 150 Women

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Dr. Madeleine Wing Adler headshot

Dr. Madeleine Wing Adler

Madeleine Wing Adler is President Emerita of West Chester University, West Chester, Pennsylvania. As President of WCU for 16 years, Dr. Adler pioneered the “distributed leadership” approach to university administration in an institution with 13,000-students and a $200 million annual budget. Previously she was Vice President for Academic Affairs at Framingham State College (Massachusetts) and a long-time faculty member and administrator at The City University of New York, including Queens College and the CUNY Central Office. She has also taught at American University and Pennsylvania State University.

For a decade after retiring as a university president, Adler was a Senior Associate at the AASCU-Penson Center for Professional Development. Her consulting focused on transitions and change in universities, leadership coaching, top management team building, strategic planning, presidential assessment, and board/president relations. She also coordinated the executive coaching component of AASCU’s Millennium Leadership Initiative.

Adler has also served as: Chair of the Board of Directors of the Chester County (Pennsylvania) Community Foundation; Member, Board of Directors, American Association of State Colleges and Universities; Member and Vice-Chair, Board of Directors, Chester County Historical Society Museum and Archives; Member, Board of Directors, Danforth Museum of Art (Massachusetts); founding Member, Board of Directors, Chester County Fund for Women and Girls; Member, Board of Directors, Willow Financial Bank; New York City Comptroller’s appointee to the Brooklyn Economic Development Corporation, and Staff Member, Joint Committee on the Organization of the U.S. Congress.

A sought-after speaker, her presentations range from “Presidential Leadership” presented at the HERS/Bryn Mawr College Summer Institute for Women in Higher Education in six different years and to “Women Leading Change” at the ARAMARK Corporation’s Women’s Summit in Charleston, SC.

She is author or co-author of a wide variety of publications, including: “Governors and Public Policy Leadership” (in Governors and Higher Education [Education Commission of the States]), Decentralization at the Grassroots: Political Innovation in New York City and London (Sage), and “Higher Education and the Politics of Investment” (Vital Speeches of the Day).

A native of Ohio who currently resides on Cape Cod, Madeleine Wing Adler holds a baccalaureate from Northwestern University and an M.A. and Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Wisconsin, Madison.

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