Ann Daley to retire from HECB after 2010 legislative session

Ann Daley, executive director of the Washington Higher Education Coordinating Board (HECB), has announced she will retire from the Board at the end of the 2010 legislative session.

Named as executive director of the HECB in February 2007, Daley is retiring after more than 30 years of service in executive policy and management positions with Washington State.

The HECB is a 10-member citizen board that administers more than $240 million in state financial aid annually, manages the Guaranteed Education Tuition program, and provides strategic planning and policy coordination for the state’s two- and four-year higher education institutions.

As the HECB’s executive director, Daley led the development and implementation of a new, 10-year Strategic Master Plan for Higher Education in Washington – endorsed by the Legislature in 2008. From 2005-07 she served as executive director of Washington Learns, in which she assisted the Governor with a comprehensive review of the state’s education system, from early learning through higher education.

Jesus Hernandez, Board chair, said Daley’s extensive experience in education policy development and education leadership positions and her knowledge of Washington State government allowed her to move quickly to create broad consensus for the Strategic Master Plan.

“The master plan addresses the critical but complex challenge of how to increase, as rapidly as possible, the number of Washington citizens who complete postsecondary education degree or certificate programs to meet expanded demand,” Hernandez said.

“Ann has provided a unique and dynamic perspective to the difficult work of advancing our higher education system as we strive to meet the diverse needs of students, to create and preserve knowledge, and to broaden our perspective of the world. Her work will help our higher education institutions lead the state to new levels of success, both economically and as a society,” Hernandez said.

Hernandez indicated the Board would begin immediately on the work of selecting a new executive director for the HECB.

Earlier this year the Legislature assigned the HECB to conduct the first comprehensive review of the state higher education delivery system in more than 30 years. The System Design Plan, due this December, will make recommendations on how and where the state’s higher education institutions can best meet the rising demand for an educated citizenry.

Daley holds the distinction of having served as executive director of the HECB twice. As the Board’s first executive director in 1989, she spearheaded the effort to develop the current system of branch campuses for the University of Washington and Washington State University.

Later that decade, she served both as an appointed member of the HECB and as a University of Washington Regent. From 2001-04, she also served as Vice President for Finance and Administration at The Evergreen State College.