Oakland, CA - In recognition of her outstanding accomplishments on behalf of higher education, Mills College President Janet L. Holmgren has received the Chief Executive Officer Leadership Award for District VII from the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE). The only higher educational recipient of the award, President Holmgren was honored for her exceptional contributions to the College and its communities, her success in promoting public understanding of education, and her significant support of Mills advancement initiatives. Since 1991, President Holmgren has served as the 11th president in the College's 155-year history.

Headquartered in Washington, DC, CASE is the professional organization for advancement professionals working in alumni relations, communications, and development. The CASE membership includes more than 3,300 colleges, universities, and independent elementary and secondary schools in 54 countries worldwide.

President Holmgren will be honored at the CASE District Conference on Tuesday, December 4, 2007 in Las Vegas, Nevada, and at the CASE International conference in July 2008.

Thomas Ehrlich, a Mills Trustee and senior scholar at the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, describes President Holmgren as "one of the country's most accomplished college presidents." He says she has "shaped Mills as a preeminent 21st-century liberal arts educational institution with an unwavering commitment to advancing women and underrepresented populations."

According to Vivian Stephenson, chair of the Mills College Board of Trustees, "During President Holmgren's administration, Mills has enhanced its national and international reputation for academic excellence, while achieving unprecedented student enrollment and endowment gains."

President Holmgren initiated the Mills Women's Leadership Institute, attracting prominent leaders worldwide to examine emerging issues of concern to women. Supporting Mills' long-standing focus on social justice and civic engagement, President Holmgren also launched the Mills Institute for Civic Leadership to enhance student leadership opportunities.

Ehrlich says, "President Holmgren led the faculty in infusing the curriculum with multicultural perspectives, interdisciplinary learning, and innovative new programs such as intermedia arts, public policy, biopsychology, infant mental health, environmental science, and Mills' inaugural doctoral program-the EdD in urban educational leadership." Based on the success of the MBA Program initiated during President Holmgren's administration, the College recently launched a new Graduate School of Business.

Since 1991, Mills' faculty of color has risen to 25% of the total faculty (up from 3% in 1991), and students of color now comprise more than one-third of the student body. President Holmgren's efforts have resulted in Mills being named one of the most diverse liberal arts colleges in the nation by U.S. News & World Report and one of the 31 top U.S. colleges for African Americans by Black Enterprise magazine.

Stephenson points out that "President Holmgren has shaped a bright future for the College, evident in her leadership of the Sesquicentennial Campaign that raised $132 million-$32 million over the original goal." Today, the College's endowment has increased to more than $230 million, and Mills has been ranked in the top third of colleges for endowment size by the Chronicle of Philanthropy.

"President Holmgren enhances the reputation of Mills and brings emerging national perspectives to the College by serving on many prominent boards," said Stephenson. President Holmgren is the past chair of the board of the American Council on Education, and the past chair of the board and a current trustee of the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. She is the past chair and a current member of the board of the National Council for Research on Women, and serves as an executive board member of the Women's College Coalition.

President Holmgren is deeply engaged with the urban Oakland community. She reaches out to influential civic leaders to teach and mentor Mills students, and personally contributes her expertise by collaborating with leaders to work on issues such as educational reform, city planning, and business development. She positions the College as an important resource for Oakland through student community service and working entities such as the Oakland Education Cabinet, dedicated to improving the public schools. As a member of the Master Plan Committee for Education in California, she has worked with statewide educational leaders on critical school reform initiatives.

The campus has undergone significant improvements during the Holmgren Administration with new facilities such as the Natural Sciences Building, the Education Complex, the Trefethen Aquatic Center, three Courtyard Townhouses, and graduate art studios. Renovations of historic Mills Hall and the Vera M. Long Building for the Social Sciences have also contributed to the transformation of the Mills campus under President Holmgren's leadership.

Mills College is a nationally renowned, independent liberal arts college offering innovative degree programs to approximately 900 undergraduate women and 500 graduate women and men. Ranked one of the top colleges in the West by U.S. News & World Report and one of the Best 366 Colleges by the Princeton Review, Mills provides a dynamic liberal arts education fostering women's leadership, social responsibility, and creativity. Nestled in the foothills of Oakland, California, on 135 lush acres, Mills was recently selected by the New York Times as one of three outstanding California colleges for students to consider.

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