Cassandra C. Lewis, Ph.D. is an educator with over fifteen years of administrative and teaching experience in the field of higher education. Her diverse involvement in many sectors of education reflect her commitment and passion for advancing educational opportunity for all students, with emphasis on promoting excellence, equity and access for underserved student populations. Dr. Lewis is currently the Associate Dean of Academic Programs at the National Defense University’s Information Resources Management College. National Defense University is the premier national security institution focused on joint professional military education, leader development, and scholarship for senior military and federal government civilians. In that capacity, she serves as principle advisor to the Dean of Faculty and Academic Programs, with responsibility for facilitating high quality curricular content, overseeing the Master of Science degree program, and developing strong academic relationships with academic partners, government agencies and stakeholders. Prior to this position, she worked as a researcher at the University of Maryland University College conducting and publishing research on effective online teaching practices and pedagogical approaches to the improvement of student retention and learning. Dr. Lewis has taught graduate and undergraduate students at numerous colleges and universities in the Washington, DC metro area.