Nov. 18, 2021—Aurora, Colo.—After an intensive search process, Bobby Pace, an experienced higher-education professional whose career stops include Virginia Tech University and the University of Colorado Boulder, has been named vice president of academic success at the Community College of Aurora.
Pace had served as CCA’s interim vice president of academic affairs since January 2021.
“I am incredibly grateful and honored to have the opportunity to lead our efforts in academic success at such an important time for the city of Aurora and the state of Colorado,” Pace said. “Our students are looking for social and economic mobility opportunities to improve their lives and those of their families, and CCA is ready to support them in their journey. I am excited to continue CCA’s tradition of academic excellence, coupled with instructional and student supports, to ensure that we serve as a catalyst for growth and opportunity for our diverse student population.”
Prior to his stint as interim vice president, Pace held several roles at CCA: dean of academic affairs and concurrent enrollment, chair of the Social Sciences Department, political science faculty member, and political science adjunct instructor.
Pace has already left an indelible mark on CCA. His efforts and achievements include:
• He developed CCA’s nationally recognized Model United Nations program—which has 300 student participants every year—in 2013. The college’s selected student delegation travels to New York to compete in the annual Model UN international event, which every year draws thousands of two- and four-year college students from around the world to compete in the simulation.
• He piloted an Institute for Civic Engagement at CCA and created Aurora’s Great Decisions discussion group. Great Decisions, an affiliation of the Foreign Policy Association, is the country’s largest discussion program on world affairs. Pace formed the institute and the discussion group to promote civil engagement among CCA students and community members.
• He developed a student-led “ThankYouAmerica” campaign as part of the Peer to Peer Countering Violent Extremism program, which is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. The campaign won a statewide competition—beating out several of Colorado’ top universities in the process—and secured an invitation for Pace and the students to give a presentation on their efforts to the U.S. State Department.
Before coming to CCA as an instructor in 2008, Pace taught political science at Virginia Tech and CU Boulder.
He holds three political science degrees: a doctorate from the University of Denver, a master’s from Virginia Tech and a bachelor’s from Virginia Commonwealth University.
“Dr. Bobby Pace is a seasoned leader in higher education and has showcased over the course of his career a deep commitment to the advancement of equitable student success,” CCA President Mordecai Brownlee said. “As we prepare for the growth and expansion of the Community College of Aurora, Dr. Pace was best equipped to support our new strategic direction and our institutional commitment to the advancement of social and economic mobility.”