Ellen Crowe, Ph.D., was named interim president of Metropolitan Community College-Maple Woods in Kansas City’s Northland on Aug. 24, 2023. She previously served as vice president of instruction and student services at MCC-Maple Woods since September of 2018. As vice president, she was chief academic officer for a campus of over 4,000 students and 46 full-time faculty. She was responsible for a campus budget as well as leading the campus’ strategic planning activities, dual enrollment and enrollment/retention initiatives. These efforts resulted in Maple Woods being selected as Best of the Northlands in higher education for the past five years.
Crowe has held progressively higher-level positions in higher education for more than 20 years. Before joining MCC, Crowe was vice president of academics at Carl Sandburg College in Illinois. Prior to that, she was dean of career and technical education at Morton College where she advanced career and economic development initiatives. Additionally, she has served as dean of education at Quincy University, department chair at MacMurray College and dean at Westwood College. She possesses extensive experience in higher education in the areas of teaching, academic development and retention, strategic planning, personnel management, professional development, mentoring, entrepreneurship, crisis preparedness, and community relations. Crowe has taught courses in special education, behavior management, teacher education and leadership and curriculum development at MacMurray College and Quincy University at both the graduate and undergraduate levels. At MacMurray College, she was awarded the Dewey Wilkins teaching award, the highest honor a faculty member can achieve. She serves as a regional director for the American Association for Women in Community Colleges. Prior to her career in higher education, Crowe worked for the Special School District of St. Louis County as an educator and administrator. Her passion for diversity, equity and inclusion was a driving point that led her from the K-12 level to higher education. She also volunteers as an advocate for parents who have children with special needs and provides professional development for instructors on behavioral interventions and teaching strategies.
Crowe’s educational background includes bachelor’s and master’s degrees in special education from St. Louis University and a doctorate in curriculum and instruction from St. Louis University.