The Baltimore Sun Names Dr. Theresa Felder One of 25 Women to Watch

Harford Community College is pleased to announce that Dr. Theresa B. Felder, President of Harford Community College, has been honored by The Baltimore Sun as one of the 25 Women to Watch: Best in Advocacy, Business and Health. The winners, leading voices in business, activism, research and more, were honored at a celebration on October 21 at the Baltimore Museum of Art.

The Sun included information on each of the 25 women including the following about Dr. Felder, written by S. Wayne Carter Jr. “Theresa B. Felder almost didn’t go to college. Now, she’s in charge of one.

Harford Community College’s first Black president is a first-generation college graduate who says her parents ‘would’ve been happy if I worked coming out of high school. There was no push to go to college.’ But once she went to school, and her younger sister followed suit, expectations for her family changed.

‘Just my one decision impacted my entire family.’ After graduating on a scholarship with a degree in accounting, she caught the higher education bug when working as a consultant for a community college in Ohio. The community college mission — Felder described it as ‘open access; we take all students’ — was something she identified with, and she shifted gears to pursue a career in higher ed.”

Dr. Felder began her tenure as the 10th President of Harford Community College in January 2021.

As Harford president, Dr. Felder has been responsible for overseeing the operation of the College during the COVID-19 pandemic. During this unprecedented time, the health and safety of the campus community has been her top priority. Another important area of focus has been enrollment, recruitment and retention focusing on engaging students who may have delayed the start of their college careers or stopped out because of the pandemic.

Dr. Felder came to Harford Community College from Clark State Community College in Springfield, Ohio, where she most recently served as the Senior Vice President for Student Success.

Dr. Felder's focus is on providing access to higher education for all students. She is especially passionate about increasing the number of college graduates from first-generation and low-income backgrounds, which was addressed in her doctoral dissertation.

She is also active in the community. Dr. Felder serves on various nonprofit boards in Harford County, including the Harford Chamber of Commerce, the Economic Development Advisory Board, the Susquehanna Workforce Network (SWN), the Northeastern Maryland Technology Council (NMTC), the Greater Baltimore Committee, the Harford Business Round Table for Education, and the Harford Leadership Academy Board of Directors.

Dr. Felder started her professional career in corporate accounting and later became an independent consultant, specializing in job readiness and employment training. Dr. Felder completed her doctoral degree in Higher Education Leadership at Northeastern University, and holds a Master of Science in Administration from Central Michigan University and a Bachelor of Science in Accounting from Syracuse University.

Dr. Felder and her husband, Greg, live in Havre de Grace, Maryland.

According to The Sun, “Nominations for Women to watch were open to the public in May and June. Women were selected after consideration and consultation with Baltimore Sun editors and staff.”