Georgetown, TX — The Council of Independent Colleges (CIC) announced Wednesday that Southwestern University President Edward Burger has been elected to the CIC’s Board of Directors. President Burger will serve a three-year term from January 2017 to January 2020.

​“I am honored to serve on the CIC Board of Directors in an ongoing effort to enhance public understanding of private higher education’s contribution to society,” says President Burger. “I am proud to serve in this capacity while representing Southwestern, a leader in innovative undergraduate education—the first institution of higher learning in Texas.”

The elections were held during a meeting of the Board of Directors at CIC’s 2017 Presidents Institute in Orlando, Fla., on Jan. 4.

CIC is the only national higher education association that focuses solely on providing services and a broad range of initiatives directly to independent colleges and universities to help improve the quality of education and strengthen institutional resources.

“The Council is pleased to have Edward Burger as a Board member,” said CIC President Richard Ekman. “CIC continues to implement many new programs, projects, and services and needs a strong Board of Directors to oversee their planning and execution. I am certain that President Burger will serve the Council admirably, and I look forward to working with him.”

The Council of Independent Colleges is an association of 765 nonprofit independent colleges and universities and higher education affiliates and organizations that has worked since 1956 to support college and university leadership, advance institutional excellence, and enhance public understanding of private higher education’s contributions to society. CIC is the major national organization that focuses on providing services to leaders of independent colleges and universities as well as conferences, seminars, and other programs that help institutions to improve educational quality, administrative and financial performance, and institutional visibility. CIC conducts the largest annual conferences of college and university presidents and of chief academic officers. CIC also provides support to state associations that organize programs and generate contributions for private colleges and universities. The Council is headquartered at One Dupont Circle in Washington, DC. www.cic.edu.

Southwestern University is a selective, nationally recognized undergraduate liberal arts and sciences university located in Georgetown, Texas. Established in 1840, it is the first  institution of higher learning in Texas. Southwestern’s residential campus offers a true liberal arts education with small classes and numerous collaborative undergraduate research opportunities. Its academic offerings include Paideia, an innovative and interdisciplinary approach to study, and close faculty-student collaboration. Students volunteer in the community at more than twice the national average and our scholar-athletes compete on one of 20 NCAA Division III varsity teams. For more information, visit www.southwestern.edu.