Ed Schrader, president of Brenau University, was named Wednesday to the board of the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities.
Schrader was elected to a three-year term on the NAICU board of directors during the organization’s annual meeting in Washington, D.C.
Schrader has been the president of Brenau University since 2005.
He is one of 14 new members of the 47-member board and will represent NAICU’s Region IV, which includes colleges and universities in Georgia, Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia.
Schrader is completing the last year of his two terms as a member of the governing board of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges, the accreditation
organization for public and private institutions in the Southeastern United States.
Schrader received a Bachelor of Science in geology with a minor in chemistry in 1973 from Millsaps College in Jackson, Miss. He earned an Master of Science from the University of Tennessee in 1975 and a doctorate in geochemistry from Duke University in 1977.
He was the associate dean of sciences at Millsaps College from 1995-2000 and was the president of Shorter University in Rome from 2000-2005.
During his time at Brenau, the university’s enrollment has increased substantially and its annual
operating budget has doubled. Brenau has added three doctoral degree programs: nursing, physical therapy and occupational therapy. It also expanded its footprint in Gainesville
to include two other facilities in the city and added campuses in Fairburn and Jacksonville, Fla.
“NAICU is the national body that speaks directly to Congress and the Department of Education on behalf of all private colleges and universities,” said Peter D. “Pete” Miller, who is chair of the Brenau University Board of Trustees. “This appointment to the organization’s leadership is indeed an honor and it reflects Dr. Schrader’s continuing commitment not only to Brenau, but also to higher education in general. Dr. Schrader has a real passion for making a difference through multiple venues. This will give him one more platform for pursuing this passion.”