Marcel Valenta is the Chief Legal and Compliance Officer for Academic Partnerships (AP). He is responsible for all legal, regulatory, and compliance matters for the company.

Prior to joining AP, Marcel was General Counsel and Head of Enterprise Development at ASU Enterprise Partners, a nonprofit that supports Arizona State University. He previously served as senior corporate counsel at Hewlett Packard and worked as a corporate transactions attorney at multinational law firms in Chicago and Silicon Valley.

As a lifelong learner with an entrepreneurial spirit, Marcel is an enthusiastic advocate for expanding access to high-quality, affordable degrees that advance individuals’ careers and social impact.

Marcel completed undergraduate legal studies in Germany and Italy and holds a J.D. and an LLM from Northwestern University. Marcel and his wife Kimberly have three children. He played tennis competitively in Europe and enjoys fitness activities and traveling.

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What traits do you admire in a leader?

Humility and an awareness that leadership is a great responsibility. You never want people to follow you blindly.

Which AP culture pillar resonates most with you and why?

They all resonate. For example, I wouldn’t want to work in an organization where people don’t care for one another and the work they do. I also wouldn’t want to work in an organization that didn’t aspire to be transformational or didn’t empower its people. That said, “student centered” is top-of-mind for me these days. If we do right by students and live up to the responsibility we have in helping people make career-altering choices, we do right by the business. “Student centricity” brings in many other values: it means that we care and collaborate. It also means that we are driven and want to avail students of the best experience in the marketplace. So, student centered it is for me right now, but it could change every month.

What would you name your autobiography?

Sisyphus Shrugged