Commencement at Elms College

2024 Commencement Brochure:

Commencement Speaker:

Marjorie Hass
Council of Independent Colleges

Marjorie Hass is a philosopher, leader, award-winning teacher, mentor, author, and an influential thinker in independent higher education. She has led the Council of Independent Colleges since 2021. Hass is inspired by CIC’s impact on hundreds of member institutions and the more than two million students they serve. She is committed to ensuring CIC remains a valuable resource to help independent colleges and universities live out their unique missions vibrantly and fully. She guides CIC’s programming to ensure it engages a diverse membership; supports member financial health and innovation; and strengthens CIC’s role as a champion of independent higher education.

A philosopher by training, Hass earned bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees in philosophy from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She has published widely on the philosophy of language, logic, and feminist philosophy and speaks frequently on leadership, shared governance, and the independent sector in higher education. She is the author of A Leadership Guide for Women in Higher Education (Johns Hopkins Press, 2021). Insightful and relevant, Hass combines first-hand leadership experience with data-informed analysis. She has a deep understanding of the challenges presidents face and compassion and admiration for the work they and other campus leaders do.

Before joining CIC, Hass served as president of Rhodes College and of Austin College. She also served at Muhlenberg College as a member of the philosophy faculty and as provost.

Hass was a member of the CIC Board of Directors from 2012 to 2016. She also has served as a board member of the Association of American Colleges & Universities and as former chair of the board of the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities. She is currently a member of the Board of Trustees at Brandeis University.