Education Management Announces the Appointment of Carol DiBattiste as Senior Vice President, Chief Legal & Compliance Officer

PITTSBURGH, Feb. 21, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Education Management Corporation EDMC today announced the appointment of Carol DiBattiste to the newly created position of Senior Vice President, Chief Legal & Compliance Officer, with responsibility for oversight of all compliance matters and legal affairs at the company. She will join Education Management on March 18, and will report directly to Edward H. West, President and Chief Executive Officer, as well as to the Board of Directors in her role as Chief Compliance Officer.

Ms. DiBattiste is a recognized expert in compliance and enterprise risk management and brings extensive legal, compliance and leadership experience from both the public and private sectors. Most recently, she held the position of Executive Vice President, General Counsel & Chief Administrative Officer for Geeknet, a publicly traded e-commerce business where she developed enterprise risk management and compliance programs. In addition, she has served in privacy, security, compliance and legal roles at Reed Elsevier and ChoicePoint, Inc., where she was General Counsel and Chief Privacy Officer. Previously, Ms. DiBattiste was a partner in the international law firm of Holland & Knight where her specialties included government relations, corporate diversity counseling, and civil and criminal litigation. 

In the public sector, Ms. DiBattiste served in many senior executive positions in the Departments of Defense, Justice, and Homeland Security. Among her many distinguished roles, she served as the Under Secretary of the United States Air Force, Department of Defense, confirmed by the U.S. Senate, where she led a $70 billion, 710,000 military and civilian department responsible for recruiting, training and education, and readiness, and earlier as Principal Deputy General Counsel for the U.S. Navy. She was also the Deputy Administrator of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), Department of Homeland Security, where she led a $5.3 billion, 55,000-employee agency, responsible for securing the transportation sector post 9/11 to ensure the free movement of people and commerce. In the Department of Justice, she served as a federal prosecutor and also as the Deputy United States Attorney in the Southern District of Florida, the Director of the Department of Justice's Office of Legal Education, and the Director of the Executive Office for United States Attorneys.

"Carol has demonstrated an abiding commitment to integrity, accountability and success throughout her distinguished career in the public and private sectors," said Edward H. West, President and Chief Executive Officer of Education Management. "She brings tremendous experience and leadership skills in compliance, risk management and corporate governance that will help Education Management build upon our dedication to operating with the highest possible standards of ethical behavior, transparency and compliance. We look forward to welcoming Carol to the Company."

"I am honored to be joining a team of seasoned executives at Education Management that is so committed to education and the success of the students and graduates of its colleges and universities," said Ms. DiBattiste.

Throughout the course of her career, Ms. DiBattiste has received numerous accolades for her work and accomplishments. In 2012, she was appointed by the Secretary of Defense to the Defense Legal Policy Board, and was also competitively selected for the 2012 DirectWomen Board Institute. She was named to Georgia's Top Lawyers by Georgia Trend Magazine in 2007. In 2005, she received the TSA's Honor Award, in 2001, she received both the Department of Defense Medal for Distinguished Public Service and the Department of Air Force Exceptional Civilian Service Award, and in 1994, the Department of the Navy Distinguished Public Service Award. She has also served on the Board of the National Center for Victims of Crime.

Ms. DiBattiste graduated with a B.A. from LaSalle University, and has a J.D. from Temple University School of Law and an LL.M. from Columbia University School of Law. In addition, she has completed the Strategic Leadership Program at Harvard Business School and retired from the U.S. Air Force with the rank of Major.

About Education Management
Education Management (www.edmc.edu), with approximately 132,000 students as of October 2012, is among the largest providers of post-secondary education in North America, based on student enrollment and revenue, with a total of 110 locations in 32 U.S. states and Canada.  We offer academic programs to our students through campus-based and online instruction, or through a combination of both.  We are committed to offering quality academic programs and strive to improve the learning experience for our students.  Our educational institutions offer students the opportunity to earn undergraduate and graduate degrees and certain specialized non-degree diplomas in a broad range of disciplines, including media arts, health sciences, design, psychology and behavioral sciences, culinary, business, fashion, legal, education and information technology.

SOURCE Education Management