WASHINGTON—ASAE is pleased to announce that Rhonda M. Payne, CAE, will become the new Chief Learning Officer. Payne will lead the development of all educational programming for ASAE, including face-to-face events and ASAE University. She will start on August 3.

Payne has 20 years of experience in higher education, association, and nonprofit worlds. She comes to ASAE after five years with the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC), a 70,000 member organization that advances the retail real estate industry and promotes its role in the commercial distribution of consumer goods and services, where she serves as Vice President of Education and Certification. Prior to that, she was Director of Education at the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID).

“Rhonda’s background in education and curriculum development, her deep involvement with stakeholders and volunteers, and overall business acumen will be a great asset to ASAE and the members we serve,” said ASAE President and CEO John H. Graham IV, CAE. “She has tremendous experience applying technology and data to develop online and traditional learning programming that reaches multiple generations and demographics. We look forward to her contributions and engaging our members in the process.”

“I'm excited to join ASAE in the critical CLO role as we aim to keep association professionals inspired to lead, inspired to learn, and inspired to be at their best. From competency-based education programs to social learning on-the-go, I’m honored to help ASAE take knowledge programs to the next level while maintaining the high quality for which ASAE is already known," said Payne.

She has helped ICSC revamp its educational offerings and create new programs that have been successful financially, increased participation, and valued by members. Payne served on a strategic leadership team that created a new direction for the organization, and she established a quality improvement initiative and standards. Throughout her career, Payne has implemented successful online learning courses at Health Industry Distributors Association, ASID, and ICSC.

Payne’s background includes healthcare, manufacturing, design, retailing, and retail real estate association experience. She is a graduate of University of Virginia, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology (Organizational/Educational Concentrations). She earned a graduate-level certificate in Communication, Culture and Technology from Georgetown University. She earned the Certified Association Executive credential in 2013.

MEDIA CONTACT: Sabrina Kidwai, APR, CAE skidwai@asaecenter.org, 202-326-9505

About ASAE: The Center for Association Leadership
ASAE is a membership organization of more than 21,000 association executives and industry partners representing 9,300 organizations. Its members manage leading trade associations, individual membership societies and voluntary organizations across the United States and in nearly 50 countries around the world. With support of the ASAE Foundation, a separate nonprofit entity, ASAE is the premier source of learning, knowledge and future-oriented research for the association and nonprofit profession, and provides resources, education, ideas and advocacy to enhance the power and performance of the association and nonprofit community. For more information about ASAE, visit www.asaecenter.org.