Dr. Crystal Neumann was selected as the 2026 Visionary Leadership Clay Award recipient
INDIANAPOLIS, July 28, 2026 – American College of Education® (ACE) is pleased to announce that its Assistant Provost of Business Professions Dr. Crystal Neumann was recently selected as the 2026 Visionary Leadership Clay Award recipient. The honor is presented by the Distance Learning Administration as part of their Wagner award series and is sponsored by Advantage Office Solutions.
Neumann’s recognition represents a demonstration of exceptional achievement and lasting impact. It’s selectively awarded to women in higher education whose accomplishments reflect visionary leadership, a commitment to advocacy in distance learning, and proactive faculty and student support.
I’m deeply honored to receive this recognition. To me, leadership has always been about opening doors for others. I love creating opportunities, supporting faculty, and helping students realize what’s possible. As higher education continues to evolve, I remain committed to ensuring innovation strengthens, rather than replaces, the human connections that make learning meaningful.
Dr. Crystal Neumann, ACE Assistant Provost of Business Professions
Having worked at ACE for nearly 12 years, Neumann’s leadership has supported innovative growth in the college’s business degree program offerings, including one of the nation’s most affordable master of business administration (MBA) programs that students can complete in a year or less, with most completing in 10 to16 months.* She’s also played an integral role in developing a fully online doctor of business administration (DBA) program. Her contributions are marked by student success, strategic direction and more.
“This award is recognition that is well-deserved for Crystal,” ACE President and CEO Geordie Hyland said. “Our leaders uphold the highest level of excellence, and we’re incredibly proud of Dr. Neumann for the impact she makes both at ACE and in the larger community.”
ACE offers affordable business degree programs designed to position working adults for career advancement and growth.
*This is an estimated time to completion. Actual completion time may vary depending on the number of transfer credits applied, availability of courses, satisfactory pace, multiple course requests, successful course completion, and meeting program milestones as required.
About American College of Education
American College of Education (ACE) is an accredited, fully online private college specializing in high-quality, affordable programs in education, business, healthcare and nursing. Headquartered in Indianapolis, ACE offers more than 60 innovative and engaging programs for adult students to pursue a doctorate, specialist, master’s or bachelor’s degree, along with graduate-level certificate programs. In addition to being a leader in online education, ACE is committed to social responsibility as an Impact Institution, where operations are guided by purpose and designed to create real-world impact.
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SOURCE: American College of Education