Keith Humphrey (2012-2013)

Seventy-Third President

Keith Humphrey, Ph.D.

2012-2013 ACPA President

Dr. Keith Humphrey’s journey into the profession first started as an abrupt “no.” During Humphrey’s undergraduate experience at the College of William and Mary, he applied to serve as a resident advisor. Initially, Humphrey was not chosen for the position, but was offered an alternate position instead. Humphrey was eventually offered the position and went on to serve as head resident advisor turning the initial no into a student affairs success. During Humphrey’s senior year, he often found himself walking past Career Services. Day in and day out, he would watch fellow peers walk into career services in grey suits to interview for jobs. Humphrey knew the sound of trudging off to work in a grey suit post-graduation sounded unappealing. So instead, he pursued a master’s degree at James Madison University and finds it humorous that he now wears a suit – often grey – to work every day. Humphrey learned about ACPA during his summer masters’ internship at Occidental College through the Dean of Students. Humphrey was invited to attend the summer meeting for the directorate of ACPA’s Standing Committee for Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Awareness. Humphrey shared, “like any good student affairs person, I left that meeting with a role and responsibility within ACPA and a full calendar of activities at the upcoming conference.”

Humphrey served as a member and eventual Chair of the Standing Committee for Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Awareness, now known as the Coalition for Sexuality and Gender Identities. Humphrey went on to serve on ACPA’s Core Council for membership services and on the Governance Task Force, which was charged with revising the governance structure of ACPA. After the task force, Humphrey joined the Governing Board as Director of Membership from 2008-2010, which eventually led to his becoming the 2012-2013 ACPA President.

One of Humphrey’s significant challenges as ACPA President was the transition of then Executive Director, Greg Roberts. Managing the Governing Board, starting the search for a new Executive Director, and supporting the Association was at times a challenging feat. One of Humphrey’s most significant accomplishments was the 2013 Annual Convention co-hosted with NIRSA in Las Vegas, NV. Additionally, Humphrey also provided the vision for the Institute for Aspiring SSAOs during his presidency and cementing the partnership between the association and the Foundation by adding the Foundation President to the Governing Board. Humphrey’s involvement post-presidency has been consistent as he now serves as the 2019-2021 ACPA Foundation President.

Reflecting on his presidency, Humphrey considers his time as president to be one of the highest honors of his career and calls ACPA his professional home. ACPA is where he’s found his closest friends and professional mentors. Humphrey recalls from his time at the conventions “some of the best work in support of students and the association occurred in the hotel hallways in the middle of convention nights.” Humphrey shares how vital it is to young professionals to be flexible in this ever-evolving profession. “It is an awesome, amazing, fun, life-giving, soul-fulfilling profession. And so I would advise new professionals stay with student affairs because I think less and less people get to do what they love. And I think the folks in our field really get to do what they love and get to make a difference.” Humphrey considers ACPA to be the trendsetter and risk taker in higher education, and is proud to have served the association in so many ways.

Presidential address given on March 27, 2012 in Louisville, KY at the ACPA12 Convention

Presided over ACPA13 Convention in Las Vegas, NV

Presidential Citations awarded to: Johnston Huang and Dwayne Todd