Linda M. Thor, Ed.D., is President of Rio Salado College, the largest (in terms of headcount) and most cost-effective Maricopa Community College serving more than 48,000 credit and 12,000 non-credit students annually. Rio Salado is “the college within everyone’s reach” that specializes in serving working adults through online learning, customized degrees with corporations and government agencies, and accelerated programs such as dual enrollment for high school students.

Under Dr. Thor’s leadership, Rio Salado has attracted national attention for its exemplary and award-winning programs, such as online post-baccalaureate teacher preparation, accelerated dental hygiene and online clinical dental assisting, adult literacy, Sun Sounds Radio Reading Service, KJZZ-FM and KBAQ-FM public radio, and prison programs. Rio Salado has provided leadership in the implementation of successful business practices in community colleges and is a former recipient of the Arizona Governor’s Award for Quality (Pioneer Award).

Prior to joining Rio Salado in Fall 1990, Dr. Thor was President of West Los Angeles College (WLAC), a 10,000-student community college located in Culver City, California. During her four-year tenure at WLAC she obtained state funding for several major capital construction projects, saw the enrollment increase 48 percent, and introduced a number of new and innovative programs.

Dr. Thor’s appointment as WLAC President in March 1986 followed a successful tenure as the Senior Director of Occupational and Technical Education for the Los Angeles Community College District where she administered over $20 million in technical training programs under federal and state grants. Earlier she served as LACCD Director of High Technology Centers and Services; Director of Communications Services for the nine-college district; Public Information Officer, and Director of Public Information for the Pepperdine University School of Continuing Education. She has served as adjunct faculty for the UCLA School of Education, Pepperdine University Graduate School of Education and Psychology, and Rio Salado College. She currently teaches for Northern Arizona University.

She received the B.A. degree in journalism from Pepperdine University, the Master’s of Public Administration from California State University, Los Angeles, and the Doctor of Education degree in Community College Administration from Pepperdine University.