President and CEO
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Dr. Jason Altmire is President and Chief Executive Officer of Career Education Colleges and Universities, the national trade association representing private postsecondary career schools. Since joining CECU in 2020, Jason has led the association to double-digit percentage increases in membership, revenue, and media coverage. In addition, CECU has during this time exponentially increased its member service, communications, and multimedia capabilities, including the acquisition of Career Education Review magazine and initiation of the association’s popular podcast. He also spearheaded the association’s creation of two new subsidiaries, the Alliance for Career Education in the States (ACES), and the CECU Research Foundation.
He has been a senior executive for multibillion-dollar companies in both the hospital and health insurance industries, and from 2007 to 2013, he served three terms in the United States House of Representatives. A prolific public speaker and commentator, Jason in 2017 authored the critically acclaimed book Dead Center: How Political Polarization Divided America and What We Can Do About It. He has been a frequent guest on national television news programs and a regular opinion contributor to a variety of national media outlets. He is also a member of the U.S. Speakers International Exchange program at the U.S. State Department, which designates American public speakers to represent the country at official overseas engagements.
In Congress, Jason was a bipartisan centrist known for working with both sides of the aisle, which led to an extraordinary record of legislative success. He served as a subcommittee chairman, had 29 of his legislative initiatives signed into law, and introduced a bipartisan bill that gained the most cosponsors of any congressional bill in American history. During his time in office, the nonpartisan National Journal calculated Altmire's voting record to be at the exact midpoint of the House -- the Dead Center -- giving him the most centrist voting record in Congress. He also served on the House-Senate conference committee that negotiated the final language of the Higher Education Act the most recent time it was reauthorized.
He has served on more than two dozen boards and civic organizations from the local to the international level. Currently, he co-chairs the Board of Advisors of the Center for Effective Lawmaking, a collaborative project of the University of Virginia and Vanderbilt University. He also serves on the boards of several other organizations, including: Jacksonville University's Public Policy Institute, the political reform group Unite America, the U.S. Global Leadership Coalition, and the Washington Political Film Foundation. He serves on the congressional advisory board of the Middle East Media Research Institute, and is a distinguished fellow at the European Institute for International Law and International Relations, a think tank focusing on global issues. In 2019, he was appointed to co-chair the National Commission on Civility and Effective Governance, which consisted of former cabinet secretaries, ambassadors, and members of Congress.
Dr. Jason Altmire is also an adjunct professor of healthcare management at the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center. He earned his Doctorate in Business Administration from the University of Florida, his Master's degree in Health Administration from George Washington University, and his Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Florida State University.