Meghan Schmidbauer is the Senior Director of Detroit Drives Degrees at the Detroit Regional Chamber, directing the Detroit Regional Talent Compact and Leadership Council and collaborating with over 50 regional and national organizations to advance initiatives to achieve 60% credential and degree attainment and reduce the racial equity attainment gap by half by 2030.
A champion of student success and data, Schmidbauer manages the Chamber’s annual State of Education and Talent report and launched the Detroit Drives Degrees Data Collaborative. She launched the Detroit Drives Degrees Data Collaborative in 2025 and has testified in Ohio and Michigan on educational access and funding.
Schmidbauer is a member of the Student-Centered Policy Advocacy Collective and the FAFSA Taskforce at The Institute for College Access and Success, the Diploma Equity Project Advisory Council, the Student Basic Needs Task Force Advisory Committee for the State of Michigan, the National Student Clearinghouse Postsecondary Data Partnership Data Collective Advisory Committee, and the Michigan Higher Education Attainment Roundtable. She also serves as the Vice Chair of the Board of Trustees at the Catholic Club in Toledo, Ohio, and is an adjunct faculty member at Owens Community College and Siena Heights University.
Schmidbauer earned a Doctorate in Higher Education Leadership from Gwynedd Mercy University, with her research published in 2024. She also earned a Master of Business Administration from Ohio Dominican University and a Bachelor of Arts in Communications from the University of Toledo.