Dr. Howard Croom is an equity-minded, justice-oriented leader with more than 15 years of experience in higher education spanning faculty roles, student affairs, human resources, and diversity, equity, and inclusion. He currently serves as Associate Vice President of People Strategy, Equity, and Culture at Portland Community College, where he provides executive leadership for people strategy, organizational development, labor relations, and employee experience across a multi-campus college serving more than 30,000 students. In this role, he also helps guide the institution’s work advancing inclusive excellence and strengthening workplace culture.
Prior to joining PCC, Dr. Croom served as Associate Athletic Director, Chief Diversity Officer, and Director of Student Services at Oregon State University, where he led the athletics department’s diversity, equity, and inclusion strategy and oversaw student development and engagement initiatives.
Dr. Croom has also held faculty appointments at the University of Southern California, Oregon State University, and Cypress College. His scholarship focuses on equity and the experiences of Black student-athletes in higher education, including a peer-reviewed publication in Kinesiology Review.
He holds a Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership from the University of Southern California, a Master of Public Policy from Oregon State University, and a Bachelor of Science in Sociology from Oregon State Universit
