Joe E. Ross
Joe E. Ross
University President, CEO, & Host
Joseph Edelheit (Joe) Ross began his service as the first president of Reach University on January 18, 2021 and is also the Chief Executive Officer of the university. In his first two years, Reach launched two groundbreaking apprenticeship-based bachelor degrees, saw undergraduate enrollment grow by over 900%, secured over $30 million in private and public grant commitments, and established the university as the nation’s leader in advancing the Apprenticeship Degree as a new model for higher education and workforce development. Along with founder Mallory Dwinal-Palisch, President Ross developed and coined the Reach Method, the university’s approach to ensuring Apprenticeship Degree quality and access, and enshrined the university’s commitment to affordability without student debt. President Ross and his academic team also established the university’s distinctive single-subject semester model and uniquely frictionless transfer policies.
The son of a U.S. Postal Service labor custodian, President Ross received his BA in political science from Yale College, where he was awarded a Truman Scholarship, and earned his JD from Stanford Law School, where he was both Managing Editor of the Stanford Law & Policy Review and the 59th President of the Stanford Law Review. Before building Reach University, he led a statewide education advocacy association, California County Boards of Education, and served for over ten years as a countywide elected trustee of the San Mateo County Board of Education. He previously served as General Counsel to a venture studio and several technology startups, and as a Deputy District Attorney, he acted as sole counsel in numerous hearings and jury trials. Earlier in his career, he served eight years on active duty in the U.S. Navy.
President Ross is host of the Apprenticeship 2.0 podcast and he has written for Inside Higher Education, Work Shift, the San Jose Mercury News, the Los Angeles Times, Newsday, and Forbes. President Ross currently serves on the Competency-Based Education Network (C-BEN) Board of Directors. He lives in Columbus, Ohio. His spouse, Adriana Diaz-Ross, is a former teacher pursuing a master’s degree in nurse-midwifery. They have three adult children.
The son of a U.S. Postal Service labor custodian, President Ross received his BA in political science from Yale College, where he was awarded a Truman Scholarship, and earned his JD from Stanford Law School, where he was both Managing Editor of the Stanford Law & Policy Review and the 59th President of the Stanford Law Review. Before building Reach University, he led a statewide education advocacy association, California County Boards of Education, and served for over ten years as a countywide elected trustee of the San Mateo County Board of Education. He previously served as General Counsel to a venture studio and several technology startups, and as a Deputy District Attorney, he acted as sole counsel in numerous hearings and jury trials. Earlier in his career, he served eight years on active duty in the U.S. Navy.
President Ross is host of the Apprenticeship 2.0 podcast and he has written for Inside Higher Education, Work Shift, the San Jose Mercury News, the Los Angeles Times, Newsday, and Forbes. President Ross currently serves on the Competency-Based Education Network (C-BEN) Board of Directors. He lives in Columbus, Ohio. His spouse, Adriana Diaz-Ross, is a former teacher pursuing a master’s degree in nurse-midwifery. They have three adult children.