A veteran higher education leader and former chemistry professor at Monmouth College, Dr. Patricia Draves is now taking on the role of President. With a more than 30-year career in higher education, Dr. Draves has seen the waves of opportunities, growth, and of course challenges:
“There is a lot of opportunity, but also a lot of challenges. One of the ones that really impact Monmouth, the community, and Warren County is that students are not attending college at the same rate as they used to. That is one that I am very concerned about. There are less students graduating from high school, but a lower percentage of those are actually going to college, and what that means for our nation in terms of people having the skills for innovation, creativity, opening new businesses, those types of things. I think that is a cycle. That is a U.S. phenomenon and not a world phenomenon.”
Dr. Draves comes to Monmouth College from Graceland University in Lamoni, Iowa, where she served as President since 2017.
