More About Our Leaders

Our senior management team is comprised of experienced and dedicated professionals committed to providing high-quality services to the organizations that rely on the Clearinghouse.

Ricardo “Rick” Torres

President & CEO

Mr. Torres joined the Clearinghouse as its president and CEO in 2008. Under his leadership, the Clearinghouse has continued to successfully extend its mission delivery of access-driven service to education, providing accessible innovative technology-based services and data exchange solutions that enable education institutions and organizations to focus on being engines that maximize human potential development. Today, the Clearinghouse is a national leader in evolving to an edu-workforce data-driven ecosystem. Mr. Torres currently serves as a board member for the Brightpoint Community College Foundation and Achieving the Dream. He was a founding member of the Groningen Declaration Network Group, a multinational group of leaders dedicated to developing a trusted international data exchange ecosystem and today serves as the chairman of their Advisory Council. Mr. Torres holds an MBA in international finance from Georgetown University and undergraduate degrees in both marketing and management from Manhattan College.

Dr. Lawrence W. Anderson

Chief Technology and Operating Officer

Dr. Lawrence W. Anderson joined the Clearinghouse in January of 2023 and has more than 20 years of experience focused on transformative infrastructure and environmental change that incorporates strong change management experience and leadership. In this new role, Larry leads the technical, data, and operating transformation of the Clearinghouse. Prior to coming to the Clearinghouse, Larry served as the Department of Commerce’s Deputy Chief Information Officer and as the Chief Information Officer for the Office of the Secretary. He focused on the design, development, security, implementation, and operation of enterprise systems and business intelligence platforms across the organization. Larry manifested the Commerce Acquisition for Transformative Technology Services, which is the largest acquisition vehicle in the Department of Commerce’s history targeted at small and underserved businesses. While at the Office of Personnel Management, Dr. Anderson served for several years as the Associate Chief Information Officer, IT Transition Executive, and Acting Chief Information Officer for Strategy and Policy.

Mary Chapin

VP, Chief Legal Officer and Corporate Secretary

Ms. Chapin joined the Clearinghouse in 2016 and has over 28 years of legal experience. She leads the Clearinghouse’s Legal department, which is responsible for the organization’s legal, regulatory, and governmental affairs. Ms. Chapin also serves as the Corporate Secretary for both the Clearinghouse and the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center, advising the board of directors on risk and governance issues. Before joining the Clearinghouse, Ms. Chapin was a litigation partner in the Intellectual Property, Media, and Technology Department of McDermott, Will & Emery LLP, an international law firm. She earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Buffalo and a law degree at the University of Toledo College of Law.

Doug Falk

VP and Chief Information Officer

Mr. Falk has served in technology leadership positions for 21 years at the Clearinghouse. He provides vision and leadership for information technology initiatives that align with business goals to improve client responsiveness, quality, security and compliance, and cost-effectiveness. Before joining the Clearinghouse, Mr. Falk spent 10 years in IT at Sallie Mae. He has served on the PESC board of directors for 15 years and as chair for six years. He earned a master’s degree in information systems technology from George Washington University and an undergraduate degree in computer information systems from DeVry Institute of Technology.

Larry Hatch

VP, Business Solutions, Communications & Marketing

As vice president of business solutions, communications, and marketing at the Clearinghouse, Mr. Hatch is responsible for the Clearinghouse’s growing academic credential verification services, along with maintaining the company’s brand and reputation. He is committed to continually delivering exceptional value to the education community. He has over 30 years of general management, sales, and business development experience in the nonprofit, marketing services, e-commerce, technology, financial services, telecommunications, and manufacturing industries. He earned a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Clarkson University.

Roberta Hyland

Chief Data Officer

Ms. Hyland has been with the Clearinghouse since 1997 and has more than 25 years of experience in education data and policy, enrollment management, and financial aid. She works with and across all areas of the Clearinghouse organization to support the successful delivery of the Clearinghouse’s mission and strategic priorities. Ms. Hyland serves as a member of Gartner’s Data and Analytics Advisory Board and its Data and Analytics Conference Board. In 2021, Ms. Hyland was named to CDO Magazine’s Global Data Power Women List. For more than 20 years, she has worked with high schools and high school students in regional and national-level speech and debate leagues. She earned a bachelor’s degree in international studies concentrating in German and Russian from Muhlenberg College and a master’s degree in higher education concentrating in enrollment management from Drexel University.

Michael Ketcham

Chief Financial Officer

Mr. Ketcham joined the National Student Clearinghouse as its vice president and chief financial officer in 2014. Since 1996, he has been the CFO of several global companies with annual sales ranging from $50 million to $3.5 billion and has extensive capital markets and M&A experience. Mr. Ketcham has helped grow businesses in 16 industries, including education, high-tech manufacturing, software, hospitality, real estate, and financial services. Prior to joining the Clearinghouse, he was CFO of Promontory Financial Group, the Wall Street Institute, Tandberg ASA, Marconi Systems, and the WMF Group. He is a graduate of Duke University and received his MBA from the University of Michigan. 

George Levathes

VP, Compliance and Operations

Mr. Levathes serves as the Clearinghouse’s subject matter expert in federal student aid regulatory compliance and oversees the operations area, which includes data excellence and customer care. He is responsible for analyzing and interpreting federal financial aid regulations regarding all Title IV programs to develop strategies and priorities of the Clearinghouse. He has over 30 years of operations, finance, and accounting experience and is the Clearinghouse’s longest-serving employee, having started with the organization in 1995. Before joining the Clearinghouse, Mr. Levathes spent seven years in the financial reconciliation, reporting, and process controls areas of Sallie Mae’s loan servicing operations. He has a bachelor’s degree in economics from the University of Maryland.

Bridget Sedlock

Chief People Officer

Ms. Sedlock joined the Clearinghouse in August of 2016 to lead human resources, internal communications, and administrative services across the organization. Before joining the Clearinghouse, she spent 18 years at the North American corporate headquarters of Rolls-Royce in various HR roles that included running the international expatriate program, recruitment, compensation and benefits, and employment policy and compliance. As an HR business partner at Rolls-Royce, she supported a remote team of HR professionals who provided advisory services to over 5,000 employees. She grew up overseas as the daughter of a U.S. diplomat, which originally led her to the international HR field. Ms. Sedlock graduated from the University of Virginia with a degree in government and foreign affairs. 

Doug Shapiro, Ph.D.

VP, Research and Executive Director, Research Center

Dr. Shapiro joined the Clearinghouse in 2010 and has been advancing student success by conducting research on higher education at the institution, state, and national levels for over 20 years. As part of his work for the Research Center, he established over a dozen new reports, with metrics on student access, persistence, transfer, and completion. Prior to joining the Clearinghouse, he held positions as director of institutional research at The New School and vice president for research and policy development at the Minnesota Private College Council. He also served on the board of directors of the National Association for College Admission Counseling. Dr. Shapiro holds a bachelor’s degree in history from the University of Chicago, a master’s in mathematics from the University of Michigan, and a Ph.D. in education from the University of Michigan’s Center for the Study of Higher and Postsecondary Education.