MA Upskilling Faculty Mentor Coordinator-Math 

Dr. Lori Bennett, retired president of Clovis Community College, is CVHEC’s Math
Faculty Mentor Coordinator for the Master’s Teacher Up-skilling Project for English and Mathematics.

Lori began her career in marketing, working for banking and consumer products
companies, including a Fortune 500 company. She also owned and managed her own small business. Dr. Bennett began her 30-year career in higher education as a part-time instructor at Highline and Tacoma Community Colleges in Washington. After moving to California, she spent 20 years at Moorpark College serving as a full-time faculty member, department chair, dean, and executive vice president of instruction and student services. In 2016, Dr. Bennett was honored to be named the 2 nd president of Clovis Community College.

Under her leadership, Clovis Community College student enrollment grew more than 40% and the College was named a Champion of Higher Education five years in a row for its exemplary work in awarding associate degrees for transfer. Clovis CC was also acknowledged as a 2022 Champion for excelling in equitable course placement in campuswide English enrollment, Latinx English enrollment, and Black English enrollment. Dr. Bennett is a proud advocate for student equity and success. In addition to expanding the transfer and career technical education (CTE) curriculum, she focused college resources on innovative, targeted outreach and retention activities to create a direct positive impact on student access and completion.

Dr. Bennett is committed to the Central Valley and has served on a variety of boards and organizations, including the Clovis Chamber of Commerce, Fresno K-16 Collaborative, Central Valley Higher Education Consortium, Fresno County DRIVE Initiative for Economic Development, and Chief Executive Officers of California Community Colleges. She is currently a Board Member for Community Health Systems.

Since her retirement in 2023, Dr. Bennett has enjoyed higher education consulting, working with a variety of California community colleges to develop comprehensive educational and strategic plans. She is excited to continue her involvement with the Central Valley Higher Education Consortium (CVHEC) through the mentoring program.

Dr. Bennett earned her Ed.D. in Educational Leadership and Policy Studies from California State University, Northridge; Master of Business Administration from the University of Chicago; and Bachelor of Science from the University of Southern California.