Second Century.
Led by Experience.
Built for Transformation.
Focused on Sustainability.
At Second Century, we partner with colleges and universities to address three fundamental goals through rigorous institutional analysis and executive-level strategy:
robust financial stability
strategic enrollment growth
exceptional brand awareness
Led by seasoned higher education leaders, we deliver culturally aligned, actionable solutions ranging from targeted assessments to full-scale organizational transformation that drive measurable, sustainable results.
At any given time, approximately 650 U.S. colleges and universities are placed on Heightened Cash Monitoring (HCM I or HCM II) by the U.S. Department of Education—a designation that significantly restricts, and in some cases effectively halts, access to Title IV funding, the primary source of tuition revenue for most institutions. For many, HCM status represents a critical tipping point from which recovery is rare.
Second Century exists to change this trajectory.
We engage early—before challenges become irreversible—and bring senior-level, hands-on leadership to rapidly assess institutional risk, identify root causes, and align stakeholders around a clear, executable path forward. Our approach is decisive, data-informed, and grounded in lived executive experience, ensuring that strategies are not only sound in theory, but effective in practice.
Where others offer recommendations, Second Century delivers results—helping institutions stabilize, adapt, and sustain their mission for the long term.
The path to this outcome is often gradual, but highly predictable: enrollment declines year over year; institutional leaders spend months or years evaluating competing strategies; solutions are implemented incrementally but fail to produce meaningful results; and as financial pressures mount, institutions face escalating operational challenges—including the inability to meet payroll. The result is frequently closure or forced merger, with significant disruption to students, faculty, staff, and the broader community.
Who We Are
We are a specialized higher education advisory firm built and led by experienced academic executives—not career consultants—who have successfully navigated institutions through financial distress, enrollment decline, and structural transformation. We bring decades of C-suite leadership experience, including presidencies, system-level administration, and board engagement, to every partnership.
What We Do
Our work is grounded in real-world outcomes. We have guided institutions on the brink of closure back to stability, including reversing federally imposed financial restrictions and executing complex mergers that preserved student continuity and institutional mission.
Why Us
What distinguishes Second Century is simple: our senior leadership is directly engaged in every project. We do not delegate critical work to junior analysts. Instead, we collaborate closely with boards, presidents, and campus stakeholders to develop solutions that are not only strategically sound, but also culturally aligned and executable.
We understand that higher education is not a generic enterprise—it is mission-driven, tradition-bound, and highly complex. That is why our approach is pragmatic, disciplined, and tailored to each institution’s unique context, ensuring that recommendations lead to action—and action leads to results.
Second Century Leaders
Dr. William Latimer
As CEO and Founder of Second Century Consulting, Dr. William Latimer brings extensive experience in institutional turnaround and transformation, grounded in his successful leadership as a college president.
His work is anchored by a proven record of stabilizing a college on the brink of closure—placed on Heightened Cash Monitoring (HCM) status just weeks before his presidency—and restoring it to operational viability.
He has also led a strategic merger that preserved institutional continuity while ensuring that 100% of students were able to continue their education at the same cost.
Dr. Catherine Alicia Georges
Dr. Catherine Alicia Georges brings to Second Century Consulting decades of distinguished leadership in higher education, student success, academic administration, and organizational governance.
As a longtime professor and department chair at Lehman College, CUNY, former president of the National Black Nurses Association, and National Volunteer President of AARP, she offers a unique perspective on educational access, student development, institutional leadership, and workforce preparation.
Her extensive experience designing academic programs, mentoring students, leading complex organizations, and advancing equity-driven initiatives provides Second Century clients with invaluable expertise in creating student-centered strategies that strengthen institutional outcomes and foster long-term success.
Second Century Difference
Direct Engagement from Senior Leadership
At Second Century, every client engagement is led by our most senior executives—seasoned higher education leaders with decades of C-suite experience. We do not delegate critical work; our top leadership is directly involved in conducting a comprehensive institutional analysis, engaging key stakeholders, and guiding the development and execution of your strategic action plan.
This hands-on, executive-level approach ensures alignment, accelerates decision-making, and positions your institution on a clear path toward financial resilience—the essential foundation for sustaining and advancing your mission.
Our Priorities
Enhancing Financial Solvency
We transform colleges facing financial uncertainty into resilient, growth-driven institutions through proven strategies that deliver lasting stability and measurable results.
Optimizing Retention and Graduation
We leverage predictive analytics, AI-driven insights, and targeted intervention strategies to improve student retention, strengthen success outcomes, and drive graduation rates.
Optimizing Enrollment
We drive sustainable enrollment growth through data-driven strategies tailored to your institution’s mission, market, and long-term financial success.
Traditional Higher Education Priorities
We deliver customized higher education solutions across strategic planning, enrollment, advancement, branding, student success, and institutional growth initiatives.
The Importance of the Right Team
Research indicates that upwards of 70% of recommendations from traditional higher education consulting firms are never implemented, often because they are perceived as misaligned with institutional culture.
Second Century addresses this gap by engaging seasoned academicians and administrators who have held senior leadership roles across a diverse range of institutions—not career consultants removed from practice.
Our leadership team understands how colleges and universities truly operate because they have led them, enabling us to deliver solutions that are both strategically sound and institutionally executable.