Dr. Alicia B. Harvey-Smith

Presidential Biography

Education

Dr. Alicia B. Harvey-Smith earned a Ph.D. from The University of Maryland – College Park, Master’s Degree from The Johns Hopkins University, and Bachelor of Science Degree from Morgan State University. Competitively selected, she also completed Harvard University’s Graduate School of Education Seminars for Presidential Leadership.

Dr. Harvey-Smith is a proud graduate of The Western Senior High School in Baltimore, MD., a college preparatory school founded in 1844, the oldest all-girls public high school in the nation and one of the city’s most distinguished institutions of learning. She is a proud member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated (AKA), an international service organization founded in 1908 and the oldest Greek-letter organization established by African American college-educated women. President Harvey-Smith is married to Major Donald Wayne Smith, a retired US Army and Capitol Police Officer.

Experience Prior to PTC

Dr. Alicia B. Harvey-Smith is a devoted higher education administrator with 30 years of successful experience in instruction, senior leadership, and higher education administration across multiple institutions and states. Committed to organizational excellence, peak institutional performance, and operational and student success, this scholar-practitioner’s experience is diverse and expansive.

A nationally recognized thought-leader in the learning college and student success movements, she originated The Seventh Learning College Principle, a model of transformational change that directs attention to the creation and nurturance of cultures that are both open and responsive to change and learning.

President Alicia B. Harvey-Smith has served in a variety of senior-level positions in Higher Education, including positions of executive director, dean, vice president and president. Prior to taking the helm of Pittsburgh Technical College, she was the Executive Vice Chancellor of Lone Star College in Houston, TX, one of the largest college systems in the country, and President/CEO of River Valley Community College in Claremont, NH.

Tenure Highlights at PTC

By unanimous vote of The Board of Trustees and overwhelming support from the college community, Dr. Alicia B. Harvey-Smith was appointed in April 2019, the 4th President/CEO of Pittsburgh Technical College (PTC), and the first President charged with leading its transformation to a high performing, private, non-profit, regionally accredited institution, located on a beautiful 185-acre campus in Oakdale, Pennsylvania. Prior to the completion of her first presidential contract, the Board of Trustees extended an offer for a second executive contract, which she proudly accepted.

Dr. Alicia B. Harvey-Smith is guiding the college to create a future by its design, while adeptly diversifying revenue generation to improve institutional sustainability and growth. Through her leadership, PTC has staked a claim on transforming the future through innovation, excellence, and strategic partnerships with diverse industry and educational partners.

A leadership strategist and people-centered executive, President Harvey-Smith energetically inspires and transforms learning environments as the first African American to hold this post. Established in 1946 as a single discipline career training institution, Pittsburgh Technical College has grown to ten academic schools with more than thirty degree and certificate programs, including bachelor’s degrees. Dr. Harvey-Smith is proud of the College’s history of student success spanning seventy-five years and its consistency in maintaining one of the nation’s highest in-field permanent rates of over 95%.

A dynamic and highly effective leader, Alicia B. Harvey-Smith, Ph.D. brought a strong vision and clear focus on the future to Pittsburgh Technical College. She immediately engaged the college and provided key priorities and strategic directions to guide planning and decision-making, to position PTC as a college of first choice for technical, applied, and STEM education, a pipeline to middle skills competitive careers, and fuel economic development throughout the region.

Nine-months into her tenure, PTC transitioned to remote operations in response to the COVID19 pandemic, and without pausing, Dr. Harvey-Smith rallied the college community and successfully led the college through a comprehensive and highly inclusive strategic planning process. In addition, she launched PTC’s Corporate College; established the Office of Diversity Equity and Inclusion; opened the college’s first Health & Wellness Center, including a state-of-the-art Fitness Center; expanded Counseling Services; and is developing new approaches to Strategic Enrollment Management to expand access to education and PTC’s reach to new and underserved populations.

Awards Under Stewardship

President Alicia B. Harvey-Smith is proud of PTC receiving the distinction of Center of Excellence in Cybersecurity from the National Security Agency and The Department of Homeland Security and its recent acquisition of three National Science Foundation Grants to further Pittsburgh Technical College’s efforts in Cybersecurity and STEM Education. Under her leadership, US News & World Report ranked PTC as “one of the best regional colleges.” Pittsburgh Technology Council selected PTC as Innovator of the Year and awarded President Harvey-Smith the distinction of CEO of the Year. During her tenure, she was presented the Woman of Excellence Award from the New Pittsburgh Courier; Woman of Influence Award, from The Pittsburgh Times; Women of Achievement Award from Pittsburgh’s Cribs for Kids; The Women Who Mean Business Award from the Houston Business Journal and selected by her peers to receive the Association of American Colleges and Universities (AAC&U/Cengage) Inclusion Scholarship.

Publications

Her most recent publication released in February 2022 is On the Brink: Reimagining Strategic Enrollment Management in Colleges and Universities. Her research is cited in Redesigning America’s Community Colleges: A Clearer Path to Student Success, published by Harvard University Press, which argues that to increase student completion, community colleges must engage in fundamental redesign. Her other publications include Partnering for Success: How to Build Strong Internal Collaborations in Higher Education; The Seventh Learning College Principle: A Framework for Transformational Change; Eclectic Insights: A Composition of Poetry and Essays on Varying Thoughts and Differing Opinions (Volume 1); and Getting Real: Proven Strategies for Student Survival and Academic Success. Her latest manuscript, CARE: Compassion, Appreciation, Respect and Empowerment: Essential Leadership Standards, is scheduled for release in 2023.

Fostering Community Partnerships

Dr. Alicia B. Harvey-Smith serves on a variety of local and national executive boards, including Pittsburgh Arts & Lectures, Pittsburgh Council of Higher Education, The Higher Education Research and Development Institute, and has served on Boards for the American Association of Community Colleges, American Council of Academic Deans, National Council on Student Development, Council for the Advancement of Standards in Higher Education, and The National Council of Black American Affairs, allowing her to influence education policy directions and impact the lives of countless individuals.

She is a frequently requested speaker and presenter who has received considerable recognition for her contributions to higher education and leadership, serving most recently as the K&L Gates’ 2022 International Women’s Day Keynote Speaker.