American InterContinental University Names New President

October 9, 2008

With his military background and passion for education, Stephen Malutich’s leadership style empowers others to succeed

Houston - Stephen M. Malutich has been named President of American InterContinental University in Houston (AIU). Malutich brings to the post a strong background in education and management shaped in many ways by his successful military career.

Born in Erie, Pa., Malutich spent 27 years of active duty in the U.S. Air Force and retired as a colonel in 2001. His educational credentials are impressive. He earned a B.S. in engineering from the Air Force Academy and an M.S. from Columbia University, where he was a Guggenheim Fellow. He also is a graduate of the Air War College, the Air Command and Staff College, and has more than 50 hours of formal training in Total Quality Management. During his assignment to the Air Command and Staff College, he was chosen to be an instructor.

“Initially the shift toward education was made for me, but it was the right direction, because I believe in the power of all education to change people’s lives,” says Malutich.

After his first teaching experience, Malutich was hooked on higher education. Subsequent assignments included Commander (President) of the US Air Force Officer Training School (OTS) at Air University in Alabama, one of three commissioning sources for the Air Force. Prior to rising to Commander of OTS, Malutich served as a Division Chief on the executive staff of Air University, advising the University president on planning, funding and teaching of 450 courses at 12 major organizations. He also served as the commander of one of only four groups in the Air Force Recruiting Service in Texas, accessing over 10,000 new men and women into the US Air Force each year.

Since his retirement from the Air Force in 2001, Malutich has worked in the post-secondary education industry as a director of education and as a campus executive director/president at schools offering both degree and diploma programs in business, electronics engineering technology, aviation maintenance, and allied health. Immediately prior to joining AIU, Malutich was Executive Director of the Texas School of Business East Campus in Houston.

“The basics for delivering high-quality education are universal,” he said. “You have to have a passion for teaching and be invested in student success.”

Goals for AIU

“One of my immediate goals for AIU is to become even more engaged with the community,” said Malutich, who plans to extend AIU’s programs by working with area chambers of commerce and by creating more workshops, such as the free visual communication workshop for teachers held last summer.

Partnering with Big Brothers Big Sisters of America, AIU will award a scholarship to a student who is participating in the mentoring program.

Increasing enrollment is another immediate and long-term goal. Malutich plans to continue reaching out to Houston’s diverse population and to veterans seeking career-focused higher education.

“We just added four new MBA business concentrations and hope to add several more programs and concentrations,” Malutich said. “Our vision for the future is all about being relevant to students by providing the knowledge they need to succeed in the careers they choose.”

On Leadership

“You can’t lead without integrity; it is key,” Malutich says. Describing himself as highly involved but not a micromanager, Malutich says, “I empower talented people who work for me to do their jobs, setting high expectations but making sure they have the tools with which to meet those expectations.”

Malutich also looks for passion in his faculty. “In order to teach effectively you have to love what you are doing. If you love what you do, it will show.”

Preparing students to succeed in real-world careers, Malutich states, “The single mostvaluable lesson for students to learn before going out into the work force is to do the right thing, to have integrity. Each of us at some point in our lives is faced with a tough ethical challenge. At such a point, you have to be able to make the right decision.”

What sets AIU apart

One of the attributes that differentiates AIU from other universities is its small student-tofaculty ratio, giving students easy access to their professors and helping with their individual pace of learning. “There is an early-alert system at AIU that lets us know if a student is having trouble. We genuinely are vested in student success,” Malutich explains.

The instructors at AIU have real-world, course-relevant experience and offer a hands-on, team-based approach to student success. AIU’s degree programs and course content are career-focused and applicable directly to the work force. Students even take field trips to apply what they are learning outside of the classroom, finding worthwhile opportunities as close by as local museums and as far away as Alaska.

The school also offers a blended learning option allowing students to schedule oncampus courses as well as non-traditional options such as on-line classes. “AIU’s blended option is a great advantage for those who are working or have other additional life commitments,” says Malutich.

Personal

When asked about personal heroes, he explains that he admires people present and past with strong personal convictions who stood up in the face of controversy for what they believed and ultimately influenced our country for the better, such as Abraham Lincoln and Martin Luther King, Jr.

Malutich lives in Manvel, Texas, just south of Houston with his wife Sandy. They have four grown children.

Preparing students to succeed in real-world careers, Malutich states, “The single mostvaluable lesson for students to learn before going out into the work force is to do the right thing, to have integrity. Each of us at some point in our lives is faced with a tough ethical challenge. At such a point, you have to be able to make the right decision".

About American InterContinental University

American InterContinental University (AIU), established in Europe in 1970, awards Associate, Bachelor’s, and Master’s degrees in a variety of disciplines. The AIU network includes seven campuses: AIU Buckhead (Atlanta, GA); AIU Dunwoody (GA); AIU South Florida (Weston, FL); AIU Los Angeles (CA), AIU Houston (TX), AIU London (England); and AIU Online (based in Illinois). For additional information, please visit www.aiuniv.edu . For more information about AIU Houston, visit www.houston.aiuniv.edu. AIU is a member of the Career Education Corporation (NASDAQ:CECO) network of universities, colleges, and schools.

American InterContinental University is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award Associate, Bachelor’s, and Master’s degrees.