Marjorie Hass

Marjorie Hass became president of the Council of Independent Colleges in 2021, after years of strengthening independent higher education in various leadership roles. From 2017 until her appointment to the CIC presidency, Hass served as president of Rhodes College. Previously, Hass served as president of Austin College where she defined a strong vision for the college’s future, pairing academic excellence with a commitment to educational access for talented students regardless of financial background, along with a strategic approach to securing the resources needed to achieve that vision. Earlier, she spent more than 16 years as a member of the philosophy faculty and subsequently as provost at Muhlenberg College.Hass was a member of the CIC Board of Directors from 2012 to 2016. Hass also has been active in the leadership of other prominent higher education associations, serving 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 the author of A Leadership Guide for Women in Higher Education. She was included on the 2024 list published by Diverse: Issues in Higher Education highlighting 40 outstanding women in her education and was the recipient of ACE’s 2024 Donna Shavlik Award, which honors an individual whose leadership demonstrates a sustained commitment to advancing women in higher education.