With more than 30 years of industry experience, Mr. Figuli has represented over 300 institutions, including some of the largest proprietary schools, multiple private equity investors in the post-secondary industry, and has served as a member of the board of trustees of four universities. In addition to institutions and investors, he has consulted for the American Council on Education (ACE), the American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU), National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO), and countless other organizations.

Prior to entering private practice, Mr. Figuli served as the General Counsel for the South Dakota University System and Chief Legal Counsel for the Montana University System. He also served as the General Counsel to Regis University, where he developed the licensing division, which grew into more than 30 partnerships with colleges and universities worldwide. Mr. Figuli also has represented the seller or buyer in over half of all successful non-profit to for-profit conversions of colleges and universities.

He received his Ph.D. in political science from the University of Missouri, and he has served on the graduate faculties of four universities. Dr. Dickeson served as the director of the department of administration and chair of the cabinet of Arizona Governor Bruce Babbitt; and chief of staff, executive director of the office of state planning and budget, and chair of the cabinet of Colorado Governor Roy Romer. He served in administrative posts at three universities and was president of the University of Northern Colorado from 1981-1991. He served as president and CEO of Noel-Levitz Centers, Inc., division president of USA Enterprises, Inc., and senior vice president of USA Group, Inc., heading the USA Group Foundation. From 2000 to 2005 he was co-founder and senior vice president of Lumina Foundation for Education.

A national leader in higher education, Dr. Dickeson has chaired blue-ribbon commissions appointed by three governors in two states, has been an officer of 40 corporate, government, foundation or public affairs organizations, and served as Commissioner from Colorado to the Education Commission of the States. He was a charter member of the President's Forum on Teaching as a Profession, an elected member of the President's Commission of the National Collegiate Athletic Association, a member of the National Commission on Minorities in Higher Education, a National Consultant with the Office of Women in Higher Education, and chaired the Council of Doctoral-Granting Institutions of the American Association of State Colleges and Universities. He is a past president of the Association of Public College and University Presidents, a seminar faculty member and mentor for the Fellows Program of the American Council on Education, and co-founder of the Renaissance Group of Universities.

His national awards include: “Outstanding Service Award" (American Council on Education); “Outstanding University President" (American Association of Colleges of Teacher Education); “Meritorious Service Award” (American Association of State Colleges and Universities); “Support to Women in Government and Higher Education Award” (Women in Government); North Central Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Hall of Fame; “Faculty-Alumni Award” (University of Missouri); and “Distinguished Service Award” (Sigma Alpha Epsilon International Fraternity).

The author of more than 175 publications in the fields of higher education leadership and policy and public administration, Dr. Dickeson taught annually for 24 years in addition to his administrative or governmental duties. While at Lumina Foundation, he led the national initiative on college costs, based on his monograph, Collision Course: Rising college costs threaten America’s future and require shared solutions (Lumina Foundation, 2004). His book, Prioritizing Academic Programs and Services (Jossey-Bass Publishers, 1999) was based on his extensive consulting experiences including serving several hundred two- and four-year colleges (private and public) and corporations ranging from hospitals to bank holding companies. During 2006, he served as senior policy adviser to the Spellings Commission on the Future of Higher Education. He is listed in Who’s Who in America and Who’s Who in the World.

He recently retired as Managing Vice President, Education Research Leader and Research Director for Academic Strategies at Gartner Inc, the world’s largest information technology research and advisory services organization. In his current and recent roles, Dr. Zastrocky examines and analyzes emerging higher education IT trends and assesses the implications of those trends on educational institutions globally. He also examines higher education management issues and how institutions can effectively and efficiently manage their organizations.

Before joining Gartner, he served as a faculty member at several universities, Assistant Dean, Chief Information Officer, Vice President of CAUSE (the international association for managing and using information resources in higher education, now EDUCAUSE), and Vice President of the Kaludis Consulting Group. He has delivered many keynote addresses around the globe and has served as a faculty member for many institutes and seminars globally. He has written or co-authored numerous books, modules, research notes and articles on computing, mathematics and management issues. He has served as a university trustee, school board member and a board member for both non-profit and for-profit education organizations around the globe. He has a bachelor’s degree from Regis University in Mathematics, a master’s degree in Education Administration from the University of Denver, and a doctor of education degree in Technology and Mathematics Education from the University of Northern Colorado.