EdD, 2011 Rodney Ellis is the chancellor of Southern University Shreveport (SUSLA). Prior to starting at SUSLA in April 2016, Dr. Ellis worked as a Buckner higher-education consultant and as chancellor of Central Louisiana Technical Community College (CLTCC), February 2013 to June 2015. He worked to inform the community about the benefits of a technical and community college education. He successfully secured nearly 5 million dollars in federal grant funding, secured 650,000 dollars in private funding commitments to start new and upgrade existing programs, restructured and rebranded a 7-campus organization, reduced the budget deficit by 1.2 million, expanded student activities and program offerings, secured 19 million dollars from the state legislature for a new building, secured 5.3 million in non-state funding for this new building, achieved reaffirmation from the college’s accrediting body, increased the public’s awareness and image of the college, and developed a new 5-year strategic plan, among other things. Ellis previously served as executive vice president at Atlanta Technical College in Atlanta, Georgia. Ellis worked at Atlanta Technical College for twelve years where he also served as vice president of IT, planning and development and director of institutional development. Prior to his service at Atlanta Technical College, he served as institutional effectiveness specialist at the Technical College System of Georgia and senior research specialist at the Roosevelt Warm Springs Institute for Rehabilitation. Ellis earned his doctorate in higher education administration, with a specialization in community and technical college leadership, from the University of Georgia; a Master of Science in judicial administration from Auburn University at Montgomery; and a Bachelor of Arts in political science from the University of Alabama. He specializes in academic and student affairs policy development and compliance, institutional effectiveness and research, accreditation compliance, resource acquisition and management, public-private partnership development, board development and strategic planning.
