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In the episode, Dr. Aisha Francis, President and CEO of the Benjamin Franklin Cummings Institute of Technology, talks about access to education and workforce development, "one of the challenges we have is to push the limits of what it means to deliver access for all."
Aisha Franklin, PhD

In 2021, Aisha Francis, PhD, became the first female President in the 113-year history of Benjamin Franklin Cummings Institute of Technology, now known as Franklin Cummings Tech. Dr. Francis is an award-winning academic, nonprofit leader, and strategist with broad experience in organizational planning, philanthropy, board development, and corporate communications. She believes in the ability of effective organizations and well-supported individuals to transform underserved communities for the better, which is her life’s work. She enjoys implementing dynamic new programs at best-in-class organizations that improve access to and equity of educational and economic opportunities.
In her previous role as the college’s Chief of Staff, Dr. Francis expanded the institution's network of supporters through external and government relations and oversaw the establishment of a new stream of workforce development programming that has since generated millions of dollars in contracts. Before joining the college, she served as the Managing Director of Development for Harvard Medical School, raising scholarship funds for underrepresented medical school students as well as diversity and inclusion
programs. She previously spearheaded marketing and fundraising for Economic Mobility Pathways and held leadership positions at the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation and Boston Medical Center.
Originally from Nashville, TN, she completed her undergraduate education at Fisk University, then earned a master's and doctorate in English Literature from Vanderbilt University.
Resources
Working to Learn: Disrupting the divide between college and career pathways for young people (2020) by Noel S. Anderson and Lisette Nieves
Journal of Career and Technical Education https://journalcte.org/articles
Sinking Like Quicksand: Expanding Education Opportunity for Young Men of Color (2009) by Noel S. Anderson and Colleen L. Larson