Lauren Asher, Public Member, is an independent consultant to equity-oriented foundations and nonprofits. A nationally recognized expert on college affordability and outcomes, she is the former president of The Institute for College Access & Success (TICAS) and co-founder of its Project on Student Debt. At TICAS, she led successful efforts to simplify the financial aid application process, increase federal and California grant aid for low-income students, make federal student loan payments more manageable, and strengthen consumer protections for borrowers. Before TICAS, she served in senior positions at the Kaiser Family Foundation, National Partnership for Women & Families, and the U.S. Department of Labor’s Women’s Bureau, where she received a Hammer Award for Reinventing Government. Her nonprofit career began in California at Children Now.

In addition to her role as a WSCUC commissioner, Lauren volunteers as a college access coach for ScholarMatch and serves on the Kids Impact Initiative advisory board. She previously served as an inaugural advisory board member to California’s Cradle-to-Career System. Lauren holds an MPA from Harvard’s John F. Kennedy School of Government and a BA from Brown University.

Current Term

2023 – 2026