Hunter Boylan

Dr. Hunter R. Boylan is recognized in the field of developmental education in the United States, with a career focused on advancing the academic success of underprepared college students. Boylan joined Appalachian State University and the Reich College of Education as director of the Kellogg Institute. He became the founding director of the Kellogg Institute for the Training and Certification of Developmental Educators and served as a graduate faculty member at Appalachian State University. After assisting in the establishment of a doctoral program at Grambling State University, Boylan returned to Appalachian State, where he served as director of the National Center for Developmental Education and professor of higher education.

Throughout his career, Boylan has held roles including gang control worker, tutorial coordinator, academic advisor, learning center director, TRIO program coordinator, developmental instructor, director of the developmental education doctoral program at Grambling State University, president of the National Association for Developmental Education, director of the Kellogg Institute, professor of higher education, and principal investigator for the National Study of Developmental Education. Under a grant from the Exxon Education Foundation, he designed and coordinated a national study of the performance of 6,000 students enrolled in 130 developmental programs. Boylan organized the first National Conference on Research in Developmental Education and coordinated subsequent national research conferences. As Professor Emeritus of Higher Education at Appalachian State University, his scholarly work has been cited extensively, reflecting the influence of his research on higher education policy and practice.

Boylan is the author or co-author of seven books and more than 100 research articles, book chapters, and monographs. Notable works include "What Works: Research-Based Best Practices in Developmental Education" and "Developmental Education: Readings on Its Past, Present, and Future," co-authored with Barbara S. Bonham. His expertise in developmental education, college completion, and higher education reform has been featured in the New York Times and the Chronicle of Higher Education.

Boylan is a former chair of the Council of Learning Assistance and Developmental Education Associations, past president of the National Association for Developmental Education, previous technical assistant for the Gates Foundation Developmental Education Initiative, and the original director of the nation's first doctoral program in developmental education at Grambling State University. He serves on editorial boards of national and international journals and participates in higher education advisory groups. Boylan was named a founding fellow of the American Council of Developmental Education Associations.

He has received the National Association for Developmental Education award for Outstanding Leadership, and the association's Outstanding Research Award is named in his honor, as are research scholarships from the Association for the Tutoring Profession and the National College Learning Center Association. Boylan has been recognized in Who's Who in American Education and received Appalachian State University's Distinguished Graduate Faculty Member award, Outstanding Advising and Mentoring award, and a Service and Leadership award from the Council of Learning Assistance and Developmental Education Associations. He also received an inaugural award from ACTP honoring his contributions to research, writing, speaking, and consulting in coaching, tutoring, learning assistance, and developmental education. Boylan's work continues to impact educators and institutions dedicated to supporting underprepared students in higher education.