Welcome to the American College of Education (ACE) Alumni Spotlight, where we highlight our alumni and share how choosing smarter education leads to meaningful outcomes.
Dr. Matthew Broxson is the Dean of STEM at Bossier Parish Community College (BPCC), serving as an educational and community leader in workforce development. He earned an Ed.D. in Leadership in 2021, where his dissertation explored internal and external stakeholder perceptions of community college. We were delighted to learn more about his career journey and impact in higher education.
ACE: Tell us about your career journey and what led to your interest in higher education leadership.
Dr. Matthew Broxson (MB): I originally studied biology as I was preparing for a career path in wildlife. I earned a bachelor’s and master’s degree in wildlife biology, and to complement that, I started teaching at a community college. I held professors in such high regard, and in full transparency, I felt like I wasn’t good enough to be one.
I was lucky to get the opportunity to enter into education, and it very much changed the way I looked at my value to society. I saw opportunities to engage with people at a broader level in a way that I thought would contribute to the betterment of society.
Once I fell into the industry, I started seeing administrative elements that could be improved to help support teachers, and these sentiments grew to the point where I saw a future for myself in educational leadership.
I was asked into my first leadership role, and it happened organically. I saw that this is a place where I can have an even greater effect. While I was moving out of the classroom by doing that, I felt I could step into a position to empower innumerable other educators to not have to face the same challenges I faced.
ACE: What made pursuing a doctoral degree at ACE the smartest option for you?
MB: I started researching different schools and came across ACE, and the program looked like it would work with my schedule. At the time, I taught morning, night and weekend classes, and I was asking myself what going back to school would do to my current career, but the online format at ACE complemented that well.
At the time, I taught morning, night and weekend classes, and I was asking myself what going back to school would do to my current career, but the online format at ACE complemented that well.
Additionally, I was working in public education, so I wasn’t rich. The feasibility and financially doable tuition cost at ACE was certainly an attractive thing as well.
ACE: Tell us about your experience at ACE and how your program impacted your career growth.
MB: Once I completed the doctorate, my future opened up, and it ultimately led me to move to Louisiana and become the assistant dean of STEM at BPCC. Then, I was recently promoted to the dean of STEM. The program opened doors that were closed. It wasn’t feasible to think I could walk through these doors from an educational standpoint.
The program prepared me with tools to handle the day-to-day responsibilities of an administrative position in higher education, or any education field for that matter, but also to understand components I hadn’t known before. Once I stepped into the role, I was already prepared. I didn’t have to go through a trial-and-error period because I already knew what to expect.
One of the great things about the program was that it very much catered to people already in the field, which helped with my work schedule. It also helped that my classmates, in most cases, were already in similar positions. I could get ideas, share experiences and adopt new approaches. It filled in gaps on any experience that I didn’t have yet.
It also helped that my classmates, in most cases, were already in similar positions. I could get ideas, share experiences and adopt new approaches. It filled in gaps on any experience that I didn’t have yet.
ACE: You recently earned the Certified Workforce Developer (CWD) credential, a prestigious credential in Louisiana. What does this represent and how does it impact your role?
MB: The CWD program is built by Louisiana Economic Development, and it’s a year-long program where we discuss matters directly affecting higher education institutions as well as the workforce in general. We got the 20,000-foot view of what was happening as far as industry trends to then tie them back to helping the greater community.
It starts with the students. We look at different funding structures to reduce barriers for student improvement and upskilling opportunities so they can go back into the community and serve both economic and community development.
ACE: You participated in the Community Action Poverty Simulation for the 2026 Louisiana Community Development Institute (CDI) program, which involves experiencing the realities of poverty. How has this experience influenced your approach to student success, especially for those facing poverty?
MB: I was honored to join the CDI program. The simulation was part of the first session, and it was a really valuable experience. We broke up into family units and were given certain resources that would replicate what would be available to an impoverished family.
A lot of us think we grew up unprivileged, but you don’t realize how different others’ lived experiences are from your own. The realities of breaking out of that mold and cycle involves a lot more than I think a lot of people understand. It was a really eye-opening experience for me.
We’re here as educators to help people break out of these situations. We’re removing barriers, but until we have a practical understanding of what people are actually dealing with, we can’t be optimally effective at doing so. I thought I understood an impoverished lifestyle, but I didn’t. I was so much further from it than I realized, and that realization helped how I see the realities of students we’re trying to help.
ACE: Tell us about your dissertation.
MB: I explored the perceptions that various groups of stakeholders have toward the intended function of a community college. Specifically, I compared external public stakeholders, taxpayers and students’ viewpoints because they’re all living in the same world and contributing to it.
I wanted to know how their perceptions vary, and the findings were quite interesting. For example, I found that community stakeholders held greater appreciation for aesthetic qualities than students did. As educational leaders, we have to check our presuppositions. We think we know what students want, but do we really?
It’s important to include internal and external stakeholders in decision making as a big take-home message from my findings. Advisory boards are a great example of this because truly considering their input can improve our operations.
ACE: What advice would you give to someone interested in becoming faculty or a leader in higher education?
MB: I think the most important lesson I’ve gotten out of my experience in higher education – and this is something that was a valuable part of the curriculum at ACE – is the idea of otherness. We are in a service industry. We are here for other people, so being able to step outside of your own preconceived notions and look at what’s really there – what people are really here for – allows you to meet those needs versus the ones that you were hoping to serve.
You’re not there for yourself. I think before anybody comes into higher education, or education at all, that this is a point that would be wise to understand.
Being an American College of Education alum has its perks. When you return as an alum for another program, you receive discounted tuition with the Alumni Continuing Education Grant. That’s Smarter Ed.
