Archives of Staff

Rebecca Lavinson is a senior program associate with the College Excellence Program, working on the Aspen Prize and Tackling Transfer projects. Prior to joining the Aspen Institute, Rebecca worked on Federal and state-level education policy at the American Youth Policy Forum in Washington, DC. Previously, Rebecca worked on international education policy at the Organization for […]

David Bevevino serves as the Director of Research and Knowledge Management for the Aspen Institute’s College Excellence Program. He provides leadership and oversight of CEP’s efforts to identify transformational strategies that advance student completion, equity, and post-graduation outcomes. His current portfolio includes the Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence, a study of highly effective rural […]

Tania LaViolet is a director at the College Excellence Program, where she oversees the program’s bachelor’s attainment portfolio, which includes the project teams for the American Talent Initiative and CEP’s community college transfer work. She is a lead author of The Talent Blind Spot: The Case for Increasing Community College Transfer to High Graduation Rate […]

Alex Anacki is a research associate with the College Excellence Program, where he provides support to the Bachelor’s Attainment Team. Prior to joining CEP, Alex worked at research-based and advocacy organizations, with a focus on federal higher education policy, workforce development, and metropolitan policy. He holds a B.A. in political science and international relations from […]

Stephanie Montaño is a program manager with the College Excellence Program, where she supports the New Presidents Fellowship and the Alumni Network which aims to address access and equity in higher education through leadership development. She also serves as the Womxn of Color Affinity Group co-chair where she helps create a safe, inclusive community where […]

Tatiana Johnson is a Communications Associate with the College Excellence Program, where she provides support on digital media and events. She comes to Aspen from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities where she focused on using communications to connect underserved communities with tax credits and free tax filing services. She also interned at the […]

Yazmin Padilla is a program associate within the College Excellence Program, where she provides support to the American Talent Initiative (ATI). Yazmin’s responsibilities include managing ATI’s partnership with the Kessler Scholars Collaborative and the second cohort of ATI’s New Presidents Fellowship. Yazmin holds a B.A. in international studies from the American University. Articles & Publications […]

Alison Quint is an associate director with the College Excellence Program, leading the development of a new Aspen Presidential Fellowship for recently appointed community college presidents. Prior to joining CEP, Alison spent seven years at the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) where she provided leadership development programming and capacity building support to state […]

Adam Rabinowitz is a senior communications manager at the College Excellence program, focused on showcasing and amplifying bachelor’s attainment projects like the American Talent Initiative (ATI), a collective of 134 high-graduation-rate colleges and universities committed to enrolling and graduating talented students from  lower-income backgrounds. Prior to joining Aspen, Adam served as media and strategy director […]

Joshua Wyner is founder and executive director of the College Excellence Program at the Aspen Institute, where he also serves as a vice president. CEP aims to advance college and university practices, policies, and leadership that significantly improve student outcomes, with a focus on students who are historically underserved in higher education. Josh has spent […]