Dr. Walter Bumphus is president and CEO of the American Association of Community Colleges. He previously served as a professor in the Community College Leadership Program and as chair of the Department of Educational Administration at The University of Texas at Austin, holding the A. M. Aikin Regents Endowed Chair in Junior and Community College Education Leadership.   

Previously, Dr. Bumphus served as president of the Louisiana Community and Technical College System, and chancellor of Baton Rouge Community College. He also worked in the corporate world, serving as president of the Higher Education Division of Voyager Expanded Learning and as president of Brookhaven College in the Dallas County Community College District. He has been recognized as a distinguished graduate from both Murray State University and The University of Texas at Austin.    

Dr. Bumphus received the ACCT Marie Y. Martin CEO of the Year Award, chaired the AACC Board of Directors, received the John Roueche and Terry O’Banion International Leadership and the AACC Leadership Awards. He also received the 2021 Baldridge Foundation’s Award for Leadership Excellence in Education. He has the distinction of having worked collaboratively with three presidential administrations.  He was appointed to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Academic Advisory Council, the 100,000 Strong Initiative, and the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for African Americans. He served on the Task Force on Apprenticeship Expansion and the 25-member American Workforce Policy Advisory Board. He currently serves on the Advisory Committee on Apprenticeships.