Mitchell Institute announces Thomas College’s Debbie Cunningham as the 2025 Maine Higher Education Professional of the Year 
The Mitchell Institute has named Debbie Cunningham, Senior Vice President for Student Success at Thomas College, as the 2025 Higher Education Professional of the Year, recognizing her exceptional impact on student access, persistence, and achievement.
The honors were presented during a campus-wide community gathering that brought students, faculty, staff, and alumni together for a shared meal and a service effort supporting families in the region. In keeping with the campus’s day of thanksgiving, Mitchell Institute President and CEO Jared Cash took the podium to recognize Cunningham as a higher education leader whose work has transformed outcomes for countless students.
“For eighteen years, Debbie has shown up for students who are often the first in their families to step foot on a college campus,” Cash said. “Her commitment to building systems that are data-informed and deeply responsive to student needs has changed lives and strengthened Maine’s higher education landscape.”
Cunningham joined Thomas College in 2007, when the first-year retention rate was 58 percent and the six-year graduation rate was 43 percent. Today, those rates have climbed to 79 percent and 60 percent, respectively—milestones her colleagues attribute to both strong institutional strategy and her unwavering dedication to students.
Thomas College President Jeannine Uzzi, who nominated Cunningham for the award, highlighted her profound influence on students and on the college.
“In my first year as president, I witnessed a longstanding, seasoned leader deeply devoted to Thomas College’s students, many of whom are the very first in their families to attend college,” Uzzi said. “Debbie is tireless in her work. She is a champion for every student who walks through our doors.”
Cunningham’s leadership has resulted in major institutional advances, including establishing Title III eligibility, securing the college’s first TRIO Student Support Services grants, launching the Fall Bridge Program, strengthening peer tutoring, and developing early risk-assessment systems that identify and support students before barriers impact their progress.
Her colleagues describe her as a mentor, a data-driven innovator, and a compassionate guide who sees the full student, not just the statistics.
“She makes a significant difference,” one colleague wrote. “The data is clear: her investment of care pays dividends, year after year, student after student.”
The Mitchell Institute Higher Education Professional of the Year Award, now in its fourth year, recognizes one Maine higher education professional whose career reflects extraordinary service to students—professional staff who are boots on the ground, often working longer-than-normal days, going above and beyond to lift up and support Maine students as they pursue, afford, and achieve a college education. The selection committee includes executive leaders from Educate Maine, the MELMAC Education Foundation, Jobs for Maine’s Graduates, the Alfond Scholarship Foundation, and the Mitchell Institute.
Cunningham will be honored next month at the Educate Maine Symposium in Bangor alongside teachers and education administrators receiving statewide recognition in their respective fields.
For 30 years, the Mitchell Institute has helped Maine students overcome barriers to higher education. By providing financial support, personal guidance, and a lifelong network, the Institute empowers Mitchell Scholars to graduate, build meaningful careers, and strengthen Maine’s communities and workforce through their success and leadership.