Traci Lee

About me

I currently serve as the Vice President of Business Solutions for Bridgepoint Education. In my present role, I provide guidance to the company's ground based and online colleges to optimize their operations while staying within regulatory guidelines.

I have over 22 years of experience in the education industry. My experience encompasses virtually all aspects of the education business, including admissions, financial aid, academics, career services, and management of multi-campus operations. I’ve held senior level management positions at Career Education Corporation, MedVance Institute and the University of Phoenix (Apollo Group) as well as providing consulting services to a multitude of colleges and universities during my tenure with Campus Management Corporation.

My focus has been on campus start ups, regulatory compliance, process improvement, and operational oversight of multiple campus colleges, including international campuses. I recognize the challenges of working in a highly regulated environment that has grown more complex as companies have expanded operations, either organically or through acquisition, to include multiple regulatory bodies and governing oversight entities.

I hold a B.S. degree in Business from Arizona State University and an M.A. degree in Organizational Management from the University of Phoenix. I have completed the Apollo Group's Executive Development Program and the Career College Association's (now APSCU) Leadership Institute.

Activity

Traci Lee

Discussion Comment

Compliance in Business Areas

True, Letha. There is often a focus on intentional violations but, the accidental mistreatment of confidential information can also lead to major issues for organizations and individuals.

Traci Lee

Discussion Comment

Compliance in Business Areas

Marc - Great point on training - I think too many schools do not make this a high enough priority. As busy as we all may be, taking the time to train new employees is critical to success and, crucial to ensuring compliance. Even those that may have experience should be trained on the specifics for a new organziation that may have different regulatory guidelines or, at a minimum, different school policies that must be followed.

Traci Lee

Discussion Comment

Corrective Action Plans

That's a great way to highlight what is outstanding vs. completed. Thanks for the valuable suggestion, Elizabeth.

Traci Lee

Discussion Comment

Preparing for an Audit

Elizabeth - I completely agree with sharing audit scenarios with staff. A couple students had inquired about staff involvement with conducting the audits and the risk of independence in doing them that way. I shared the guest audit concept in response to that and a couple other messages. The ideal is to have both - staff involved and understanding the significance of audits but, independence to maintain the integrity of the review. I applaud you for your audit efforts in a small school as I know this is frequently ignored as a priority given staff limitations in a small campus.

Traci Lee

Discussion Comment

Effect of Media

It's great to see this positive perspective, Elizabeth. I am afraid I often hear people paint a less positive picture indicating that the career colleges cater to a "challenging" target market group. I hope to see others add their comments here as I am hoping more will share your point of view!

Traci Lee

Discussion Comment

Corrective Action Plans

Thanks for sharing, Dale. I have had a few questions lately about how internal audit departments support ongoing audits while also doing the follow up on action plans from completed audits. Do you have any suggestions or guidance you can provide regarding how you balance those responsibilities?

Traci Lee

Discussion Comment

Preparing for an Audit

Dale, I want to be sure I understand your question. Some of the postings referenced incorporating campus based employees but, I thought the plan was not for them to audit their own campus but, other locations in the system. I was involved with internal audits where (as you may have read in the thread)we utilized guest audtitors from other campuses to conduct some of the audit tests. Guest auditors were "hand picked" based on their skills and professional traits. The tests we had guest auditors perform were very non-subjective but rather, quantitative in nature and the lead on the audit… >>>

Traci Lee

Discussion Comment

Effect of Media

Fortunately, I think certain industries and certain employers have become supportive of the career college for the practical training they provide. Unfortunately, you are right, Dale, that there are many who view the career colleges as inferior. Despite the volume of happy graduates from career colleges that are gainfully employed, the media plays up the few that complain about their discontent. The education industry is not unique in that sense as you often hear it said how vocal those that complain are compared to those that have only positive praise for a company or institution.

Traci Lee

Discussion Comment

Compliance in Business Areas

I completely agree. It can be a very eye opening (and sometimes painful) experience initially. However, the experience is about the best way to identify where training needs and other management involvement is required. Knowing that some regulatory bodies are doing the same thing, it's particularly important to know exactly what is being said. Oftentimes, inappropriate comments are not done intentionally but, simply because someone doesn't know the answer and tries to "do the right thing" by improvising which can lead to trouble.

Traci Lee

Discussion Comment

Corrective Action Plans

Very true, Howard. Support from the highest levels is critical to ensure that any changes "stick".

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