Dr. Benjamin T. Duran is a highly respected higher education leader, teacher, and former president of Merced Community College in California.  He retired as superintendent/president of the Merced Community College District in 2012 after serving 22 years in the district with the last 14 years as the CEO. Dr. Duran is now Executive Director of the Central Valley Higher Education Consortium (CVHEC), an organization that brings together 29 community college, independent, and university CEOs to collaborate on higher education issues in the Central Valley of California.