Dr. James L. Fisher
Author and President Emeritus of CASE and Towson University

James L. Fisher has been a consultant to more than 300 colleges and universities and is the most published writer on leadership and organization in higher education today.  He has written scores of professional articles and has also been published in such popular media as The New York Times, The Washington Times, and The Baltimore Sun.  The author or editor of ten books, his book, The Board and the President, "clearly established him as the nation's leading authority on the college presidency," wrote Michael Worth of George Washington University reviewing in Currents.  His The Power of the Presidency was reviewed in Change magazine as "... the most important book ever written on the college presidency" and was nominated for the non-fiction Pulitzer Prize.  His book, Presidential Leadership: Making a Difference, has been reviewed as "...a major, impressive, immensely instructive book,  ...a virtual Dr. Spock for aspiring or new college presidents, and ...a must read for all trustees."  The Entrepreneurial College President (2004) is “….to be commended….” “…a Bible for those who are presidents…” “…or engaged in research…,” The Journal of Higher Education and Interactive Reviews.  His recent book, Positive Power, is quickly gaining popularity throughout the United States and internationally:\

• The modern Machiavelli...from Aegon to Zenix...persuasive and to the point, Baltimore Sun.
• There is definitely something happening with this book.  We are out of stock already, National Book Network
• He is presently writing, Born, Not Made: The Entrepreneurial Personality, which should be published in 2008. 

A registered psychologist with a Ph.D. from Northwestern University, he is President Emeritus of the Council for Advancement & Support of Education (CASE) and President Emeritus of Towson University.  He has taught at Northwestern, Illinois State, Johns Hopkins, Harvard, and the University of Georgia.  He coined the term institutional review and has conducted hundreds of institutional and governance reviews for public and private institutions and systems. He also conducts board orientations and retreats and consults on presidential searches, evaluations and contracts.

Dr. Fisher has been a trustee at ten private colleges and universities and two preparatory schools.  A former Marine, he presently serves as a board member of Millikin University, Florida Institute of Technology, Marine Corps University and the Marine Military Academy.  He has received awards for teaching, writing, citizenship and leadership and has been awarded eleven honorary degrees.  At Illinois State, The Outstanding Thesis Award was named by the faculty, The James L. Fisher Thesis Award.  The faculty at Towson University recommended that the new psychology building be named after Dr. Fisher, and the CASE Distinguished Service to Education Award bears his name.

While president at Towson, The Baltimore Sun wrote that he was a "master educational politician....under his leadership, enrollment doubled, quality went up and costs went down."  In Washington, Newsweek magazine reported that, while President at CASE, his national campaign, The Action Committee for Higher Education (ACHE) resulted in "more than $1 billion in student financial aid."  CASE also created and orchestrated the "America's Energy is Mindpower" campaign, "Higher Education Week" and "The Professor of the Year" awards.  For several years, he did a popular daily radio commentary on WBAL in Baltimore and has been an occasional OP/ED feature writer for The Baltimore Sun.  Through the years, Dr. Fisher has been encouraged by leaders in both parties to run for Governor or Senate.