President and CEO
Dr. Ade Somide is Political Scientist and Higher Education Specialist –with a special focus on International Development / Human Capital Development. He earned his Ph.D. in Political Science (Comparative and International Relations) from the Rockefeller College of Public Affairs and Policy, State University of New York at Albany, having earlier earned an M.A. in Government (1987) from Eastern Kentucky University and B.A. in Political Science (1986) from Berea College, Berea, Kentucky.
Innovative and results-driven leader, Dr. Somide possesses excellent analytical, organizational and leadership skills and has consistently achieved outstanding results through an efficient, collaborative management approach. His career in public sector governance and higher education spans over 30 years. Prior to his appointment as Rector, International Vocational Technical & Entrepreneurship College (IVTEC), he was Director for Budget Policy and Analysis for the State University of New York, the largest public higher education system in the United States with 64 campuses and an annual all-funds budget of more than 18 billion dollars. There, he delivered policy guidance and solutions in financial management and academic/administrative policies, which resulted in system-wide operational efficiency and accountability, as well as significant improvement in student services and success rates.
Dr. Somide was Deputy Director for Higher Education with the New York State Legislature where for over 10 years he successfully delivered innovative programs for New York State higher education sector and participated in Executive-Legislative negotiations of annual state budgets. In this role, Dr. Somide also developed state-wide programs in economic development, technology workforce development, higher education-industry, and higher education-government partnerships. He has published numerous issue briefs and other types of analyses related to higher education law, policy and finance.
In addition to his extensive public sector and academic backgrounds, Dr. Somide is also an international development consultant and has participated in capacity building projects in Nigeria and several African countries. He has held teaching appointments as Adjunct Professor in the Department of Africana Studies and the Rockefeller College of Public Affairs and Policy both at the State University of New York, and at Skidmore College in Saratoga Springs, New York. He has published several papers on topics such as Higher education policy and finance, African development, democratic governance, and conflict management in Africa.
Resident and Affiliated Experts
Abayomi Ogunsola, Director General, Kwara State Public-Private Partnership Bureau and Chief Economic Assistant
Ainsley Thomas, BA, MA. Director, Albany County Government, Albany NY USA.
Brian Michael Henehan, Senior Extension Associate (retired), Agricultural Cooperatives, Dyson School of Economics and Management, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY USA.
David Lee, Ph.D. Professor of Economics and International Development, Charles H. Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY USA.
Femi Ogunsola, BA, ICAN. Trade, Investment, Entrepreneurship and Public Finance expert.
Harold M. van Es, Ph.D. Professor and Chair Department of Crop and Soil Sciences, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853 USA
Peter Folorunsho, Legal Practitioner
Peter Gregory, Ph.D. International Professor (Adjunct) of Plant Breeding and Genetics, Consultant on Agricultural Biotechnology and International Development, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York 14853 USA.
Tokunbo Adeloye, BA, CIH. Expert on Facility Management, IT, and Health & Safety Management.
Ronnie Coffman, Ph.D. International Professor of Plant Breeding and Director of International Programs, College of Agriculture & Life Sciences, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853 USA.
Wale Adebanwi, Ph.D. Professor of African and African-American Studies, University of California, Davis, CA USA.
Zoe Nelson, BS, MA. Associate Director, Government Relations, Cornell University USA.