AFIT welcomes President Ava Parker of Palm Beach State College

We are delighted to welcome Ava Parker, President of Palm Beach State College (PBSC) in Lake Worth, Florida, to our collaborative community of innovators. 

Ava is PBSC's first female president and has led the college since 2015, guiding meaningful growth in STEM education, campus infrastructure, student success, and regional workforce development. 

A hallmark of her leadership is PBSC's selection as the home of TGL,  —  an innovative professional golf league developed by TMRW Sports in partnership with the PGA TOUR. TGL's first-of-its-kind indoor arena, SoFi Center, located on PBSC's Palm Beach Gardens campus, hosts two-hour, 18-hole matches featuring top professionals, broadcast live on ESPN. This collaboration has created internships, jobs, new academic programs, revenue growth, and international recognition for the College. 

PBSC has also restructured its Institutional Research and Evaluation Department, moving research under the Chief Information Office to strengthen data-informed decision-making, while keeping evaluation and assessment within Academic Affairs. 

The college has been recognized eight times as a top-performing, Aspen Prize-eligible institution since the award’s inception in 2011. Most recently, PBSC was named to the Top 200 colleges eligible for the 2027 Aspen Prize, following its inclusion in the Top 150 for the 2025 Prize. 

Ava joins AFIT to collaborate with leaders committed to innovation, agility, and student-centered transformation. 

Please join us in welcoming Ava and the entire Palm Beach State College team to our Alliance! 

_{🤖 Ai assisted, human reviewed.}