WGU Washington
A University Built For You

Tonya Drake, Regional Vice President, Northwest Region

A leader in higher learning, Dr. Tonya Drake has dedicated her career to expanding access and success to high-quality and relevant higher education. She serves as Chancellor and Regional Vice President for the Northwest at Western Governors University (WGU).  

Her work is guided by the belief that higher learning transforms lives and she is passionate about creating pathways to opportunity. Drake earned the Certificate of Leader Development for National Security and Strategy from the National Security Seminar at the U.S. Army War College. She served as keynote speaker at the Global Leadership Summit in South Africa on the topic of “Deconstructing Race” and she was named among Seattle Business magazine’s “Daring Women.”

She has extensive experience in leadership positions at Edmonds Community College, Shoreline Community College, Maricopa Community College District, Arizona Board of Regents, Arizona State University, and the University of Washington. Drake serves on the board of directors for the Association of Washington Business. She has served on the executive committee for the United Way of Snohomish County and is an active member of  women’s executive leadership group, Chief.

Drake holds a Ph.D. and master’s degree from Arizona State University, a bachelor’s degree in Business from University of Washington, and an associate degree from Lower Columbia College.

Ismar Vallecillos, M.Ed., Northwest Regional Director, Western Governors University

In the rapidly changing higher education landscape, no one is more confident that higher ed can and should help all students go further than Ismar Vallecillos, Northwest Regional director for the largest online higher education institution in the United States, Western Governors University (WGU). With more than 110,000 enrolled students nationwide, WGU offers a unique, accredited, competency-based education model, which measures skills rather than time in the classroom. This allows students to achieve an undergraduate degree for less than $20,000 in a shorter period of time.

Vallecillos brings an inspiring and motivating perspective to education in Colorado and the Northwest, with particular emphasis on his belief that education is the great equalizer. His experience as an educator from elementary through college level, combined with his personal background as the son of immigrants and an adult education student, equip him with wide-ranging expertise that encompasses access, affordability, innovative learning environments and equity in education, particularly the Latinx experience.

Vallecillos has a passion for supporting low-income, rural, first-generation, technical-degree-holding and some-collegebut-no-degree students. As an immigrant from El Salvador, Vallecillos grew up working for his father’s landscaping business before earning his bachelor’s and master’s degrees while raising a family of his own. He believes in the power of education to improve lives and strengthen communities.