Wendy M. Stack, Ph.D
Senior Advisor
In her role as Senior Advisor at the National Council for Community and Education Partnerships (NCCEP), Dr. Stack provides leadership to strategic initiatives aimed toward leadership development programming and successful outcomes in the GEAR UP community.
Prior to her role as Senior Advisor, Dr. Wendy M. Stack served as the Associate Vice President for Access, Innovation and Research at Northeastern Illinois University, the Director of the Chicago GEAR UP Alliance and The Center for College Access and Success (CCAS).
Dr. Stack led the Chicago GEAR UP Alliance from 1999-2020 through six grants awarded over 20 years. These grants served over 100,000 students and their families in partnership with the Chicago Public Schools, seven community colleges, six local universities and many community-based organizations and business partners.
Stack holds degrees from McGill University and McMaster University and received her Ph.D. in Leadership and Change from Antioch University. Her dissertation research “The Relationship between Parent Involvement and Student Success in Chicago GEAR UP Communities” demonstrated the significant relationship between parent involvement and student success. Her dissertation received an International Innovative Electronic Thesis and Dissertation (ETD) award.
Dr. Stack’s leadership in research and evaluation, innovative partnerships, STEM initiatives and college access and success has led to numerous grant awards from the National Science Foundation and the U.S. Department of Education. These include an NSF NOYCE, NSF HSI, a Title III HSI-STEM, a Title V Individual, a Title V Cooperative grant and many TRIO (Upward Bound, Upward Bound Math and Science, Talent Search) grant awards.
Dr. Stack served on the NCCEP Advisory Commission for three years and served as the inaugural partnership director on the NCCEP Board of Directors from 2018-2020. Dr. Stack facilitated multiple presentations, panels and workshops for NCCEP at every conference since 1999 through February 2020.
As the first college graduate in her family, Wendy has a clear understanding of the value of education and the opportunities made available to anyone who pursues a college degree. Dr. Stack began her career as a high school teacher in Montreal, Canada before her attainment of advanced degrees. Her experience as a teacher shaped her view as an early proponent of Critical Thinking/Inquiry Based student-centered curriculum. All of the Summer Academies, school year workshops and weekend conferences; Young Adult Literature Conference & Science, Technology, Engineering, Art & Math (STEAM) Conference, were driven by an Inquiry Based approach. Freshmen Connections, an inquiry-based curriculum developed by Chicago GEAR UP staff to bridge the transition from middle school to high school during the summer, was adopted by the Chicago Public Schools and formally added to their curriculum. Dr. Stack is a passionate advocate for first generation students and their families.
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