Dr. Joe May to Keynote Fall 2017 Commencement

A&M-Commerce alumnus and seventh chancellor of the Dallas County Community College District Dr. Joe May will be the commencement speaker for the Fall 2017 commencement ceremonies to be held on Friday, December 15 and Saturday, December 16.

A first-generation college student, Dr. May understood the importance of higher education from an early age.  He has worked tirelessly in his career to improve public and private education in the United States by working with public school districts, sponsored charter schools, career academies and early college programs. His work also extends globally: he has consulted on new community college initiatives in Japan, Russia, Mexico, Panama, Colombia, and Saudi Arabia.

Dr. May has held leadership positions at various universities, community colleges, and community college systems, including president of the Louisiana Community and Technical College System and system president for the Colorado Community College System.

As president of Rebuilding America's Middle Class (RAMC), a consortium of community colleges he helped start, Dr. May has remained committed to improving the Dallas economy by helping increase the overall number of jobs for the middle-class. He advocates for partnerships between universities and colleges and local and national business.

Dr. May earned his doctorate in education from Texas A&M University-Commerce in 1980. He was a Distinguished Alumni Award recipient of A&M-Commerce in 2014. He also earned a Master of Education and Bachelor of Science from Stephen F. Austin State University. A native of Northeast Texas, Dr. May has been chancellor of DCCCD since 2014.

We look forward to welcoming this distinguished alum back to the campus.