A 75 Year History...


The Midwest Association of Colleges and Employers (formerly MCPA), was organized in June 1949, at a meeting attended by five college placement officials and one industrial representative. The charter members, and the organizations with which they were associated with at the time, were:

  • Wendel W. Burton, 3M Company
  • F. Lynn Cason, Purdue University
  • H. S. Dawson, University of Illinois
  • H.G. Goehring, University of Wisconsin
  • L. R. Hillyard, Iowa State College
  • John E. Steele, Indiana University

Mr. Cason of Purdue University was the first President. The first meeting of active members was held in May 1950, on the Purdue Campus, with 31 college placement officers attending. The first Annual Meeting was held in Detroit in September 1950. The attendance of 185 members indicated an enthusiastic response to the plan and purposes of the new organization.

Mission Statement

The mission of Midwest ACE is to provide regional leadership in promoting and strengthening the relationships between collegiate and employer members through professional development, networking, and engagement opportunities.


Past Presidents

1949 - 1950 F. Lynn Cason - Purdue University
1950 - 1951 H.S. Dawson - University of Illinois
1951 - 1952 L.R. Hillyard - Iowa State College
1952 - 1953 H.G. Goehring - University of Wisconsin
1953 - 1954 John E. Steele - Ohio State University
1954 - 1955 Lelth Shackel - Carleton College
1955 - 1956 J.D. Snider - Indiana University
1956 - 1957 Frank Endicott - Northwestern University
1957 - 1958 David Robinson - Baldwin-Wallace College
1958 - 1959 Roye R. Bryant - Southern Illinois University
1959 - 1960 Chester E. Peters - Kansas State University
1960 - 1961 Donald C. Hunt - University of Detroit
1961 - 1962 Ray G. Mock - College of St. Thomas
1962 - 1963 Helen M. Barnes - State University of Iowa
1963 - 1964 Altred R. Looman - Valparaiso University
1964 - 1965 Arthur R. Eckberg - Roosevelt University
1965 - 1966 Emily Chervenik - University of Wisconsin
1966 - 1967 Emily Chervenik - University of Wisconsin
                    Lilyan B. Bradshaw - Ohio State University
1967 - 1968 Leo A. Eason - Washington University

1968 - 1969 Leo A. Eason - Washington University
1969 - 1970 John G. Young - University of Michigan
1970 - 1971 Robert Vokac - University of Michigan
1971 - 1972 Richard A. Stewart - Purdue University
1972 - 1973 James A. Marks - University of Wisconsin
1973 - 1974 James L. Galloway - Bowling Green State University
1974 - 1975 Herbert A. Harmison Jr. - Iowa State University
1975 - 1976 Vernon V. Geissler - Kansas State University
1976 - 1977 Eugene W. Steele - The 3M Company
1977 - 1978 Janet Windmeier - University of Minnesota
1978 - 1979 J.W. Paquette - Drake University
1979 - 1980 C. Randall Powell - Indiana University
1980 - 1981 John W. Crooks - Eli Lilly and Company
1981 - 1982 Richard J. Thain - University of Chicago
1983 - 1984 Robert M. Greenberg - University of Cincinnati
1984 - 1985 Larry L. Austermiller - Arthur Anderson & Company
1985 - 1986 Glenn T. Rosenthal - Ball State University
1986 - 1987 Linda Lease Franklin - General Electric Company
1987 - 1988 Carol Barrett - Purdue University
1988 - 1989 Roxanne Hori - Northwestern University

1989 - 1990 Clayton L. Barnard - Case Western Reserve University
1990 - 1991 Harvey T. Procter Jr. - Ford Motor Company
1991 - 1992 Kitty Arnold - University of Notre Dame
1992 - 1993 Mark Case - University of Michigan
1993 - 1994 Sara Kearsley - Ohio University
1994 - 1995 James Ladson - The Timken Company
1995 - 1996 Timothy Luzader - Indiana University
1996 - 1997 John Gerrard - Inland Steel
1997 - 1998 Barbara S. Hundley - University of Illinois
1998 - 1999 Michael Avgenackis - Deere & Company
1999 - 2000 Kathleen Fisher - Marietta College
2000 - 2001 Donald Katz - Employers' Recruiting Center
2001 - 2002 Jane Linnenburger - Bradley University
2002 - 2003 Marie Artim - Enterprise Rent-A-Car
2003 - 2004 Ellen Anderson - Northern Illinois University
2004 - 2005 Kathy Hancock - Hewitt Associates
2005 - 2006 O. Ray Angle - Webster University
2006 - 2007 Sheri Papay - National City Bank
2007 - 2008 Kristi Gimmel Becker - Clarke College
2008 - 2009 Drew Butts - Enterprise Rent-A-Car
2009 - 2010 Gail Rooney - University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
2010 - 2011 Jeff Beavers - Whirlpool
2011 - 2012 Laura Kestner - Marquette University
2012 - 2013 Drew Butts - Enterprise Rent-A-Car
2013 - 2014 Hilary Flanagan - Notre Dame
2014 - 2015 Nell Madigan - University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
2015 - 2016 Mary Kate Garner - Plante Moran
2016 - 2017 James Mitchell - Ball State University
2017 - 2018 Kerri Boivin - University of Michigan
2018 - 2019 Julie Gourley - Northrop Grumman
2019 - 2020 Tim Scully, The Children's Museum of Indianapolis
2020 - 2021 Patricia Simpson, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
2021 - 2022 Eden Haycraft, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
2022 - 2023 Monica Hood, Enterprise Rent-A-Car
2023 - 2024 Katie Kennealy, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
2024 - 2025 Karl Aldrich, Saint Louis University