Award recognizes Booker’s leadership and service in the professional association

University of Phoenix is proud to announce that Marc Booker, Ph.D., vice provost of strategy for the University is the recipient of an American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers (AACRAO) Thomas A. Bilger Award for 2024. Dr. Booker will be honored at the 2024 AACRAO Annual Conference, April 7-10 in Columbus, Ohio.

“It is an enormous honor to receive the Thomas A. Bilger Award from AACRAO,” states Booker. “AACRAO is a fantastic organization which fosters the talent that helps lead our institutions into a more innovative and student-centric future. It is a privilege to be able to serve such an organization that has been able to develop thoughtful leaders and advocates who have driven higher education institutions forward to serve students more equitably. This is a very special recognition to me as it honors my service to this organization, and so it is deeply humbling to think that some of my efforts have had an impact on the virtuous cycle that AACRAO provides in the development of its membership.”

AACRAO is a non-profit, voluntary, professional association working to make higher education more responsive to learners. With a membership of nearly 14,000 higher education professionals representing approximately 2,300 institutions in more than 40 countries, the association provides advocacy, research, and policy-based guidance and training to higher education professionals to smooth the path for learners at every stage of their journey.

According to AACRAO, the Thomas A. Bilger Award recognizes a member who has demonstrated consistent vision, service, and leadership in AACRAO and has contributed seven or more years of volunteer service. The award honors leaders with the foresight to recognize the needs of the field and contribute to those needs through their service in a leadership position. Booker has been a longstanding member of AACRAO and has supported AACRAO’s mission for 15 years. Currently, Dr. Booker serves as the Chair for AACRAO’s Transfer and Articulation committee, is co-lead for its upcoming Transfer and Technology summit, and holds the role of AACRAO Parliamentarian. Booker has also supported AACRAO for over a decade as a regular speaker and author for the association, and most recently developed AACRAO’s Transfer Articulation 101 online course.

“AACRAO is delighted to recognize the exceptional leadership of Dr. Marc Booker by awarding him the 2024 AACRAO Thomas A. Bilger Award,” said Melanie Gottlieb, AACRAO’s Executive Director. “For fifteen years, Dr. Booker has contributed his knowledge and expertise in ways that have helped positively shape AACRAO. We are deeply grateful for his contributions to the Association and to the field of higher education.”

As Vice Provost for Strategy at the University of Phoenix, Booker oversees critical path academic initiatives to improve the student experience such as learning platform implementations, curricular enhancements, and developing empathetic solutions to drive improved student outcomes through data. He is the recipient of the 2024 UPCEA Operational Excellence Award and in 2023 was part of a leadership team named winners of the Catalyst Award for Teaching & Learning. In 2020, Booker received a Hall of Fame recognition from Blackboard.

Widely recognized as an expert in transfer credit and Credit for Prior Learning (CPL), Booker previously served as vice president of Admissions and Evaluation at University of Phoenix; during his tenure his office received three Showcase in Excellence Awards from the Southwest Alliance for Excellence for processes related to admissions application, transcript and prior learning assessment processes.

Booker has been an employee of the University of Phoenix since 2001.

About University of Phoenix

University of Phoenix innovates to help working adults enhance their careers and develop skills in a rapidly changing world. Flexible schedules, relevant courses, interactive learning, skills-mapped curriculum for our bachelor’s and master’s degree programs and a Career Services for Life® commitment help students more effectively pursue career and personal aspirations while balancing their busy lives. For more information, visit phoenix.edu.

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