GSE Distinguished Alumni Award Recipients
2007
Arthur Cole, Ph.D.
Senior Advisor
Public Service Institute
University of Oklahoma
Arthur Cole, Ph.D., recently retired from the federal government after more that thirty years of service. Dr. Cole's positions included director of the Department of Education's training and development office that served 5,000 staff; deputy director of the White House Initiative for Historically Black Colleges and Universities; service in the United States Peace Corps as director for the Kingdom of Lesotho, an independent nation inside South Africa, where he led over 100 volunteers who assisted some of the lowest income residents on the continent in education, agriculture, and health projects; and he was responsible for overseeing more than twenty federal programs in the areas of technical assistance, public school choice, teacher education, and educational equity, as director of School Improvement Programs.
In 2003, Dr. Cole joined the University of Oklahoma as senior advisor in the Public Service Institute. There he continues to address the challenges of education, poverty, and communication for the most impoverished citizens of the world through the institute's partnership with the Observatory for Cultural and Audiovisual Communication, a non-government organization accredited by the United Nations, and based in Milan, Italy.
Lenora Cole
Commissioner
Board of Elections and Ethics
District of Columbia
Lenora Cole, Ph.D., has dedicated her life and professional career to help eradicate racial inequalities and stereotypical gender roles. Her accomplishments include developing curricula and programs to educate economically, culturally, and mentally challenged youth in school districts in Buffalo and Chicago, and serving as vice president for student affairs at The American University and the University of the District of Columbia. At both institutions she strengthened and created student development programs to recognize the needs of all students.
During the height of the women's movement, President Ronald Reagan appointed her director of the Women's Bureau of the Department of Labor, to create standards and policies for women in the workforce. In this position, she was the chief government spokesperson for employed women, and directed the Washington office and 10 regional units.
Dr. Cole has traveled extensively, both nationally and internationally, advocating for working women and advising them of their rights, opportunities, and responsibilities. She has also served her community as a board member for numerous non-profit and professional organizations, and is currently one of three commissioners of the Board of Elections and Ethics of the District of Columbia.
2006
David S. Spence
President
Southern Regional Education Board (SREB)
David S. Spence became president of SREB in 2005. As president, Dr. Spence oversees the nation's largest school improvement network, the nation's largest educational technology collaborative of state K-12 and postsecondary agencies, and many other initiatives designed to help the organization's 16 member states lead the nation in educational progress.
From 1998 to 2005, Dr. Spence was executive vice chancellor and chief academic officer of the California State University System, which includes 23 campuses, over 400,000 students and 20,000 faculty. During that time, he implemented the system's strategic plan, the development of a systemwide initiative to increase graduation rates and the establishment of a system accountability process. Most notably, he initiated and coordinated California's Early Assessment Program, in which the college readiness of high school juniors is evaluated, and the results used to further prepare senior year students and adjust high school standards to focus on college readiness.
Dr. Spence received his doctoral degree in higher education from UB in 1975.
2005
J. Donald Schumacher
President and CEO
National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO)
J. Donald Schumacher, Psy.D., has been the president and CEO of NHPCO since October 2002, and president of the National Hospice Foundation since June 2003. He also serves as president of the Foundation for Hospices in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Dr. Schumacher received his doctorate from the Massachusetts School of Professional Psychology (MSPP) in 1986. Prior to attending MSPP, Dr. Schumacher graduated from UB with his master's degree in rehabilitation counseling in 1977. From 1978-1989 he was the CEO of Hospice West in Waltham, MA. He served as the president and chief executive officer of The Center for Hospice & Palliative Care in Buffalo from 1989-2002. Dr. Schumacher currently serves on the board of the National Health Council. He has lectured nationally on the psychological care of the terminally ill patient and the expansion of hospice care both nationally and internationally.
Dr. Schumacher is licensed as a clinical psychologist in Massachusetts and New York State.
