Global Campus chancellor named UPCEA board president‑elect

Closeup of Cillay.
Dave Cillay

Washington State University’s Global Campus Chancellor, Dave Cillay, has been named by UPCEA as president-elect of the organization’s board of directors.

UPCEA is a Washington, D.C.-based association for college and university leaders in professional, continuing, and online education. 

Cillay has been on the organization’s board of directors for three years and was selected as its secretary/treasurer last year. He will serve as the board’s president-elect for a one-year term from 2022 to 2023, then ascend to the role of board president in 2023.

“This is an incredible opportunity, and I am deeply honored and humbled to be able to serve in this capacity,” said Cillay. “In this new role, I look forward to continuing WSU and UPCEA’s mutually beneficial relationship while advancing this great organization’s vital mission of increasing the impact of innovative, academic technologies and extending its reach to even more students around the globe.”

“Students in the online, professional, and continuing education space are a large and growing part of our university system,” said WSU President Kirk Schulz. “Having a good working relationship with great organizations like UPCEA is vital to better serving and advocating for these students. I’m confident that having Dave in this new role will have a significant benefit for both WSU and UPCEA, strengthening our relationship and positively impacting students on all our campuses.”

Cillay started at WSU in 2003 as director of instructional development and technologies at the university’s Center for Distance and Professional Education, responsible for the design, development, and maintenance of online courses and programs. Under his leadership, CDPE evolved into WSU’s online Global Campus, established in 2012. He was named the campus’ first chancellor in 2019. 

Cillay also serves as WSU’s vice president of Academic Outreach and Innovation (AOI), the division of WSU responsible for identifying, implementing, and sustaining new and innovative educational options that expand WSU’s reach, support faculty and students in the use of academic technology, and ensure a high-quality educational experience for all students who access WSU through technology. In addition to Global Campus, AOI also oversees WSU’s Learn365, Professional Education, and Learning Innovations programs.

Cillay’s work has been published in journals and textbooks, and he has presented at national and international conferences regarding online education, learning design, change leadership, and academic technology. 

“As has been proven over and over again, especially in recent years, that online learning, academic technology, and other innovative learning techniques are vital resources for those pursuing higher education in the modern world,” said Cillay. “For WSU Global Campus students, online learning offers a convenient and flexible format that fits their diverse lifestyles, allowing them to pursue academic endeavors alongside career, family, and any other life goals they choose.”

For more than 100 years, UPCEA has served most of the leading public and private colleges and universities in North America. The association serves its members with innovative conferences and specialty seminars, research and benchmarking information, professional networking opportunities, and publications.

“UPCEA is a great organization that I’m very proud to be a part of,” said Cillay. “It’s my ambition that my continued work with UPCEA will help me to better serve the needs of WSU students around the globe, as well as all online and continuing education students, as we move forward into the future together.”

Next Story

WSU Common Reading accepting desk copy requests for 2024–25 book

Paperback copies of How the Other Half Eats: The Untold Story of Food and Inequality in America are available at no cost from the Common Reading Program for instructors and staff at four campuses.

Recent News

IBC professor takes on new leadership role

Mark Lange is stepping into a new role as WSU’s Institute of Biological Chemistry director after serving as interim director for 18 months.