Westcliff University, rewired

When Anthony Lee EdD ’13 took over the role of president of Westcliff University in 2012, the school was unaccredited and enrolled fewer than 100 students. Fast-forward to 2025, and under Lee’s leadership, the school is now accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges and has a student body of nearly 8,000.

For Lee, the son of immigrants from Vietnam, education was of utmost importance, and it was deeply ingrained in his upbringing. Based in Irvine, Westcliff University was founded in 1993 by his father, John Lee Yuhnaut, whom Lee describes as a “huge influence on my life.” In his current role as president and CEO, Lee finds a great sense of purpose in empowering others through education. “Allowing them a pathway for success in their future holds very near and dear to my heart,” Lee says.

Before becoming president of Westcliff, Lee worked at Irvine University for nearly a decade, ending his tenure as CEO. With an eye toward expanding and revitalizing Westcliff University, Lee enrolled in the USC Rossier Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership program. Lee’s dissertation work focused on expansion strategies for institutions that specialize in international education, and as the newly minted president of Westcliff, he was in a unique situation to immediately put this research to work.

His dissertation chairs, professors Mark Power Robison and Michael Diamond, helped guide his thinking and research as he began to develop strategies to reposition and expand Westcliff University into a preeminent global institution. The focus was on “providing a valuable, quality and effective education to students all over the world,” Lee says.

For his dissertation, Lee “focused on the creation of new programs to meet higher education needs in Vietnam,” Robison says. “Through that research, and in his professional life, Dr. Lee is very adept at identifying educational needs and finding ways to match learners with the opportunities they need to thrive.”

Tapping into Robison’s and Diamond’s vast experience, Lee also learned the importance of utilizing different modalities for international education, including hybrid models and fully online programs. 

Equally important, Lee learned, is building strong relationships with the governments and ministries of education within the countries he wanted to target for recruitment. These relationships can help guide program development at the university, Lee explains. For example, if a country has a need for certain skilled workers, Westcliff can partner with them to create a tailored program, ensuring that local industries will have a skilled workforce and students will have well-paying jobs after they graduate. The school is working with officials and industry professionals in the Toronto area on programs that will help businesses fill vacant positions in the technology industry.

Westcliff also has the advantage of being able to move quickly and with flexibility. This agility is something Lee has leaned into as the school launched a College of Technology and Engineering a few years back. This year, it has launched a College of Nursing and a Master of Science in Artificial Intelligence program.

“We pride ourselves on how fast we can move and get things approved through the governance process thanks to our collaborative and mission-driven approach,” Lee says. If there is a market need for a program, Westcliff can pivot quickly and have a new program up and running in six months to a year, he says.

“A big part of our success is the team that I’ve been able to build here at Westcliff. Whether that’s across the administrative functions or the academic leaders we have, we are all moving in the same direction,” Lee says.

As the benefits of higher education have come under scrutiny in recent years, with some Americans lacking confidence that an advanced degree will lead them to well-paid careers, Lee believes colleges need to focus on providing a return on students’ investment.

The partnerships with local governments that Westcliff has developed can help restore the public’s trust in higher education, as the return on investment for graduating students is immediately clear. “One of the reasons why I think Westcliff is successful is our approach: We make it our top priority to offer programs that prepare students for jobs in high demand,” Lee says.

Universities, especially those focused on international education, must also consider their modalities. “The world is continuing to get smaller,” Lee says, and “having innovative models in education is going to be a pivotal component to set us apart.” 

Students from around the world still want to come to the United States to study, but many might face barriers and constraints. However, universities like Westcliff can help fill that gap, Lee says: “We can provide them with a quality U.S. education that can advance their skills, enable their social mobility and empower their entrepreneurship, if that’s the route they choose to take.”