Eduardo J. Padrón has served as president of Miami Dade College since 1995. The college is recognized as a national model of student achievement and is the largest institution of higher education in America, with more than 174,000 students. TIME magazine has included Padrón among the 10 Best College Presidents in the US; The Washington Post named him one of the eight most influential college presidents; and the Carnegie Corporation of New York granted him its prestigious Centennial Academic Leadership Award. He is the immediate past chair of the board of directors of the American Council on Education and a past board chair of the Association of American Colleges and Universities. During his career, he has been selected to serve on posts of national prominence by six American presidents.