Posted: March 5, 2010

Deborah M. DiCroce
President
Tidewater Community College

Deborah M. DiCroce has headed Tidewater Community College since May 1998, following nine years as president of Piedmont Virginia Community College in Charlottesville.

During her tenure, TCC has experienced 12 consecutive years of record enrollment increases, serving over 47,000 credit students in the current academic year.

A strong advocate for education as the great equalizer, DiCroce has worked to expand the reach of higher education across workforce, gender, racial and cultural boundaries. Among her many recognitions, she was named "Downtowner of the Year" in 2005 by the Downtown Norfolk Council and "Woman of the Year" by the Virginia Women's Forum in 1993. Hampton Roads Magazine named her to its "A List of 50 Very Important People Shaping Life in Hampton Roads" in 2006. In 2005, Portfolio Weekly included her in its list of "100 Best People, Places, and Things in the 7 Cities." Discover Portsmouth profiled her in its 2006-07 issue as a "living symbol of what is best about Portsmouth." Inside Business put her on its regional "power broker" list in 2000. And, most recently, in 2008, The Chronicle of Higher Education profiled her as one of 10 "Presidents Who Make a Real Difference."

DiCroce has served on statewide commissions and committees under five Virginia governors. She is a past trustee of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools and a past chair of the Presidents Academy of the American Association of Community Colleges. And she just completed a two-year term as chair of the Virginia Council of Presidents.

DiCroce chaired the regional board of the Hampton Roads Chamber of Commerce in 2006 and the United Way's 2002 regional campaign. She is currently vice chair of the Hampton Roads Partnership and chair of the Urban League's Board of Directors.

She holds bachelor's and master's degrees in English from Old Dominion University and a doctorate in higher education from the College of William and Mary.

Editor's note Deborah DiCroce will serve on the panel on March 16, but she was not available to respond to questions in advance.