Dear Friends:
I send this note to you with some important news about Complete College America’s future. Tom Sugar informed me last week that he has decided to redirect his passion and enthusiasm in pursuit of new opportunities. While Tom has stepped down as President of CCA, he will serve as an advisor to the Board as we engage in a national search for his successor. Our two Senior Vice Presidents, Sarah Ancel and Bruce Vandal, alongside the organization’s seasoned leadership team, will guide Complete College America during this transition.
I extend my sincere thanks for Tom’s nine years of remarkable accomplishments as a co-founder of CCA along with Stan Jones. Tom stepped in during Stan’s final year as president and picked up the leadership mantle as Stan’s health continued to decline, effectively assuming Stan’s duties as president while continuing his tasks as senior vice president. The CCA Board demonstrated its confidence in Tom by officially appointing him as president upon Stan’s passing.
Tom has brought passion and strong leadership to our work. He, along with the rest of the CCA Team, have mobilized the Alliance to implement Game Changer strategies that have improved post-secondary completion rates and closed equity gaps. During Tom’s tenure, CCA focused relentlessly on how ineffective academic practices were hurting student success and did the necessary work to ensure many more students are able to pursue and complete credentials of purpose and value.
Demand for CCA’s advocacy and technical assistance continues to grow, and the impressive team that Tom has built will continue this work with as much urgency and intentionality as ever before, accelerating the rate of change among Alliance members.
I want to publicly thank Tom for his service to CCA and wish him well as he pursues new opportunities. And I ask that you redouble your commitment to our CCA mission during this leadership transition.
Please join me in expressing appreciation to Tom for his many contributions that you have seen and experienced. We wish him all success as he charts his next adventure.
