Vice President of Accreditation Relations
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Tom Bordenkircher, vice president of accreditation relations, has experience in P–12 public education, higher education, county and state government policy and leadership, national foundation leadership, and specialized accreditation. Prior to coming to HLC, Tom was senior consultant and state director for the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation’s STEM Teaching Fellowship Program. In Ohio, he was the Associate Vice Chancellor for the state Board of Regents, where he oversaw higher education program approval and the development of a statewide accountability system for educator preparation programs.

His higher education experience also includes roles as professor of education, chair, director, and associate and interim dean. Prior to his work in higher education, Tom began his career as a teacher of young children with severe disabilities. His professional interests continue to center around research and policy work for young children, especially those experiencing learning and reading difficulties. Dr. Bordenkircher holds B.S., M.Ed. and Ph.D. degrees from the University of Pittsburgh.

Vice President of Accreditation Relations
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Gigi Fansler joined HLC as vice president of accreditation relations in 2018. Prior to this role, she served more than 25 years as an administrator in both public and private universities, working with liberal arts and professional programs serving undergraduate and graduate, and traditional and nontraditional students in face-to-face, hybrid and online environments.

Before joining HLC as a staff liaison, Dr. Fansler was a member of the HLC Peer Corps and Institutional Actions Council, a trainer for new peer reviewers and new team chairs, and her institution’s Accreditation Liaison Officer. She also served on peer review teams as a chair for various types of HLC visits, and on the Peer Corps Diversity Committee.

Dr. Fansler earned a Ph.D. in higher education from Illinois State University and a Post-Graduate Studies Certificate from Harvard University Graduate School of Education’s Institute of Education Management.

Vice President of Accreditation Relations
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Andrew Lootens-White joined the Commission in 2007 and has served in several capacities, including as HLC’s chief operating officer from 2013 to 2020. Today as vice president for accreditation relations, Dr. Lootens-White is the HLC staff liaison to over 100 colleges and universities and also provides leadership and guidance related to HLC’s online Assurance System and HLC’s Annual Conference program. In his work, he encourages colleges and universities to mobilize the efforts of faculty, staff, and students to accomplish collectively-valued goals – a vital concept in both higher education and accreditation spheres.

Dr. Lootens-White previously worked as the director of academic technology and a writing-across-the-curriculum faculty liaison at the University of Missouri. He also has served in a state-wide academic affairs role at the Missouri Department of Higher Education. He earned a B.S. in Secondary Education, English Education, a M.Ed. in Secondary Education, Language Arts, and a Ph.D. in Instructional Theory and Practice from the University of Missouri.

Vice President of Accreditation Relations
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John Marr joined HLC as vice president of accreditation relations in 2018. Dr. Marr brings over 30 years of administration, teaching, consulting and board governance experience from a broad cross-section of higher education institutions.

Dr. Marr has held student development and academic administrative positions at Clark State and Columbus State Community Colleges. He served as secretary of the university and executive assistant to the president at Wittenberg University, and dean of academic affairs for the Eastern Campus of Cuyahoga Community College. Dr. Marr has served on the boards of Trinity Lutheran Seminary and Kendall College and has extensive adjunct teaching experience with The Ohio State University, Antioch University Midwest and Ferris State University. Dr. Marr is also an experienced former HLC peer review team chair and a former member of the Institutional Actions Council. Dr. Marr holds a B.A. from Wittenberg University, an M.S. from Wright State University, and a Ph.D. in Educational Administration from The Ohio State University.

Vice President of Accreditation Relations and
Director of the Open Pathway
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Jeff Rosen serves as vice president of accreditation relations and director of the Open Pathway. With expertise in governance, graduate study, civic engagement and strategic planning, he advises institutional leaders on accreditation policies and practices and oversees the peer review process for 130 public and private institutions. In 2018, Rosen conducted an agency-wide evaluation of HLC’s processes and outcomes, and in 2013, developed HLC’s approval protocol for competency-based education. He currently serves on the Steering Committee of WCET (WICHE Cooperative for Educational Technologies).

Before joining HLC, Jeff served as a research university dean of professional and continuing studies, professor of art history, and elected trustee of a public community college. In those roles, he created numerous academic programs by developing cross-campus initiatives using multiple delivery platforms. Rosen holds a Ph.D. from Northwestern University, an M.S. in Adult Education from Southern Connecticut State University, and a B.A. from New York University. His most recent book is Julia Margaret Cameron’s ‘fancy subjects’ (Manchester University Press, 2016).

Vice President  and
Chief Transformation Officer
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Karen J. Solomon  joined HLC in 2003. Since 2016, she has been leading HLC’s future-focused grant initiatives on innovation and student success.

Dr. Solomon serves as a public representative for the Council for the Advancement of Standards in Higher Education (CAS) and is a past chair of the WICHE Cooperative for Educational Technologies (WCET) Executive Council. She served as a reviewer of good practices for INQAAHE and has been a consultant, presenter and peer reviewer for developing international accrediting agencies.

Previously, Dr. Solomon was the founding Executive Director of Illinois Campus Compact and served in various roles at ACT, Inc., Benedictine University, and Northern Illinois University. She holds an Ed.D. in Adult and Continuing Education from Northern Illinois University with a focus on adult learners and educational technology, a M.B.A. from Benedictine University and a B.A. from North Central College.

Vice President of Member Education and Peer Corps Service
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Jamie Stanesa has more than 30 years’ experience in higher education and nonprofit management. As vice president of member education and peer corps service, Stanesa oversees the planning and delivery of educational programs for nearly 1000 institutional members and the peer review operation for HLC

Prior to joining HLC, Stanesa held multiple positions at the University of Chicago, including associate dean in continuing education, where she developed master’s degrees and professional certificates across many disciplines, and associate dean at the School of Social Service Administration, where she led various university and community partnerships. Stanesa’s past experience also includes several years on the executive team at the Greater Chicago Food Depository, where she led the agency’s community development and capacity-building efforts with more than 600 food pantries and soup kitchens in Cook County, and as an independent consultant, providing services to nonprofit organizations in strategic planning, board development, program development and capacity building. Her faculty experience includes several years as an assistant professor at Iowa State University, where her research and teaching focused on 19th-Century American literature and culture.

Stanesa holds a Ph.D. in English from Emory University, an M.A. from Wayne State University, and an A.B. from the University of Michigan.

Vice President of Accreditation Relations
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Linnea A. Stenson joined HLC as vice president of accreditation relations in December 2013 and served as director of the AQIP Pathway from 2015 to 2021. Dr. Stenson brings more than 30 years of higher education experience at a wide range of institutions, affording a broad understanding of higher education. Dr. Stenson was the founding program director of Steven J. Schochet Center for GLBT Studies at the University of Minnesota. From there and for 10 years, Dr. Stenson served as academic dean for liberal arts departments and career programs at Minneapolis Community and Technical College; for five years during this same tenure, Dr. Stenson served as the associate vice president for academic affairs.

A Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Augustana College in Rock Island, Dr. Stenson received an M.A. and Ph.D. at the University of Minnesota. She has published a number of articles and presented papers at national conferences, most recently on creative partnerships between community colleges and small liberal arts colleges to support world language learning, and on programs designed for college readiness and retention.