Advisory Board Biographies
Bettsey L. Barhorst
Bettsey L. Barhorst served as President of Hawkeye Community College in Waterloo, Iowa, from 2001-2004. In January, 2005 she became President of Madison Area Technical College in Madison, Wisconsin. Dr. Barhorst is the recipient of many awards including the Phi Theta Kappa President’s Award, the Shirley B. Gordon Award of Distinction from Phi Theta Kappa, the Athena Award, Illinois State University Alumni Hall of Fame, and the American Association of Women in Community College’s Jewel Award. Currently, Dr. Barhorst serves on a number of boards both in the greater Madison area and on a national level, including the American Association for Community Colleges (AACC) Global Education Commission, the American Council on Education (ACE) Commission on Women in Higher Education, and the Community College Consortium for Autism and Intellectual Disabilities.
Sharon Bartels
As president of Gwinnett Technical College, Dr. Bartels is responsible for leading one of Georgia’s largest technical colleges as it serves 12,000 people per quarter through its credit, continuing education, and adult education programs. Bartels created a vision that expanded the Gwinnett Tech campus from two buildings to nine buildings with several off-site locations. She has a high profile, not only in Gwinnett County, but throughout the state of Georgia. Bartels has been named one of Georgia Trend’s 100 Most Powerful and Influential Georgians, and was named Gwinnett Magazine’s 2005 Woman of the Year. She is also a well-known community leader. A former long-time member of the Gwinnett Rotary Club, she was also on the board of directors for the United Way of Gwinnett and chaired its 2004 campaign. Bartels served as a board member of the Early Education Commission and is currently a board member of Gwinnett Clean and Beautiful and Georgia Gwinnett College. In 2009 the Gwinnett Chamber of Commerce recognized Bartels with the prestigious Citizen of the Year Award.
Jack Becherer
Dr. Jack Becherer has served as President and CEO of Rock Valley College in Rockford, Illinois since 2004. Prior to this assignment Jack was the President of Wenatchee Valley College in Wenatchee, Washington for almost four years. Jack has served in state leadership in workforce development and adult literacy. He received the Shirley B. Gordon Award of Distinction from the Phi Theta Kappa Scholastic Honorary in 2009, and the 2003 Pacesetter of the Year Award from the National Council for Marketing and Public Relations, District VII.
Cynthia Bioteau
Dr. Bioteau is the seventh president of Salt Lake Community College, an urban multi-campus college of 60,000 students located throughout the Salt Lake Valley. She is responsible for creating and implementing the first associate degree in Nanotechnology for the state of North Carolina, as well as the five-college National Initiative recently funded through the United States Department of Labor—The National Center for the Biotechnology Workforce. Dr. Bioteau is known for her passion for positioning the Community College as the core and engine of economic and workforce development.
Terrence Burgess
Terrence J. Burgess currently serves as the President of San Diego City College, a position he has held since spring 2001. Prior to his San Diego appointment, he served as the President of Chabot College in Hayward from 1997 to 2001, and as Vice President of Instruction with Irvine Valley College in Irvine from 1986 to 1997, including one year of service as Interim President. Burgess began his career in higher education in 1970 as a Professor of Biology in a number of community colleges, California State University and the University of California. Burgess completed a Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts degrees in Biological Sciences with the University of California, Los Angeles, and California State University, Fullerton, and a Ph.D. in Decision Science with Walden University, Minneapolis.
Michael L. Burke
Dr. Michael L. Burke was named the ninth president of Milwaukee Area Technical College by the District Board on January 6, 2010. Dr. Burke has more than 25 years of experience in community colleges in Texas, Idaho and California. While at San Jose City College, he was engaged in a major rebuilding program that resulted in numerous new educational facilities on campus. SJCC experienced 16 percent growth in enrollment from 2007-2009 and Burke spearheaded quality improvements to the college’s instructional program and student support services.
Jim Catanzaro
Dr. Jim Catanzaro has been president of Chattanooga State Community College for nearly twenty years. Previously, he served as president of Triton College in Illinois, Lakeland College in Ohio, and Chaffey College in southern California — 32 years in total as a college president.
Dr. Catanzaro holds the Ph.D. degree from Claremont Graduate University in Philosophy of Religion. He studied leadership at The Wharton School of Business, and in the University of Texas at Austin Community College Leadership Program. His “Second Generation” online course, Religions of the World as Practiced in America, has been selected by the Monterey Institute for inclusion in the Institute’s National Repository of America’s best web-based courses. He is a frequent speaker at regional and national conferences. He addressed the Positive Psychology Summit in Washington, D.C.; and he was the keynote presenter at the International Higher Education Conference in Melbourne, Australia.
President Catanzaro is author of a book on achieving personal well-being, Ascend: Releasing the Power of the Human Spirit. He has hosted a weekly television interview program aired principally on PBS affiliates since the 1980’s; and he represents higher education on the board of the prestigious National Foundation for Advancement in the Arts.
Olympic torchbearer, recipient of the Distinguished Graduate Award of the University of Texas, member of the Claremont Graduate University Hall of Fame, and Toastmasters Award Winner for Communication and Leadership are among his many credits. The Gallup Organization assessed his greatest strength to be “Maximizer” – taking ordinary ideas, operations, and initiatives and making them exemplary.
Larry Darlage
Dr. Larry Darlage has been president of Tarrant County College Northeast (Texas) for almost 15 years. During this time, the campus has doubled in size, growing from 9,000 credit students to about 18,000. Prior to his presidency at TCC NE, he spent 9 years as the divisional dean of science and mathematics and 9 years as the vice-president of instruction at Brookhaven College in Dallas.
Dr. Darlage holds the Ph.D. degree in Organic Chemistry from Iowa State University. After graduate school, he performed research at the University of Florida and has published numerous papers and written several science-related study guides. His love for science began when he heard about the launch of Sputnik in 1957 and continues to this day. He enjoys performing “Mr. Wizard” experiments for elementary and middle school kids in the Fort Worth area, and even “big kids” in Rotary Clubs and chambers of commerce.
Dr. Darlage is very well connected in the Fort Worth community. He has served as chairperson of the boards of three different chambers of commerce, the Arts Council of Northeast, the United Way, the American Heart Association, The North Texas consortium of Colleges, and two executive leadership organizations, one of which he helped cofound. Many of these organizations have recognized his involvement in the community by granting him awards in outstanding leadership.
Greg DeCinque
Dr. Gregory T. DeCinque came to the Jamestown area in 1994 as Jamestown Community College’s seventh president. He received a Richardson Fellowship at the University of Texas in 1982 and an American Council on Education Fellowship in 1985. Dr. DeCinque was responsible for the planning and development of the Advanced Technology Center at Brookdale Community College and was named a Founding Father of the High Technology High School in Lincroft, NJ, in 1992. During his tenure at JCC, the college was regionalized, moving from sole sponsorship by the City of Jamestown, to include Chautauqua and Cattaraugus counties as sponsors. Construction was completed on a new $31 million campus in the heart of downtown Olean, the major city in Cattaraugus County. In addition the Manufacturing Technology Institute was developed in partnership with the Manufacturers Association of the Southern Tier, and the college, in concert with the Olean YMCA, established a shared athletic and recreation facility which serves the Olean community. Dr. DeCinque has been involved with numerous community organizations, including: Manufacturers Association, Chautauqua County Industrial Development Agency, WCA Group Board, Chautauqua County Workforce Investment Board, Far West Council of Superintendents, United Way Board, Chautauqua County Chamber of Commerce Board, Jamestown Strategic Planning Commission, and Institute for Community College Development (ICCD) at Cornell University – currently chairman of the board.
Ned Doffoney
The philosophy of creating opportunity is deeply rooted in the professional life of Ned Doffoney. Whether he is founding a community college, providing leadership to his campus, or teaching, Dr. Doffoney believes in creating opportunities for talented people who might not otherwise have such options. Before beginning his role as Chancellor of the North Orange County Community College District on July 14, 2008, Dr. Doffoney served as president of Fresno City College. Prior to that, he was the founding President and Chancellor of South Louisiana Community College, President of Saddleback College in Mission Viejo, Vice President of Academic Affairs for Los Angeles City College, and Dean of Academic Affairs for Los Angeles Southwest College. He also has teaching and counseling experience in higher education since 1975.
Patricia Donohue
Dr. Donohue was appointed President of Mercer County Community College on February 1, 2007. The recipient of many awards and the author of numerous articles on higher education, Dr. Donohue speaks frequently at conferences and workshops nationwide. She began a two-year term as President of the American Association of Women in Community Colleges on July 1, 2007 and she won the Athena Award in 2006.
Mark Estepp
Dr. Mark Estepp took the helm of Southwest Virginia Community College on July 1, 2007.
Before coming to SWCC, the Matewan, West Virginia, native was dean of the College of Fine and Applied Arts at Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina. While at Appalachian State, he held several positions including that of professor in the Department of Technology. He has also worked as a college administrator and teacher at Livingston University, Livingston, Alabama and as a teacher in the public school system in both Missouri and Kentucky.
Mark is the son of a coal miner and a homemaker. Before enrolling at Berea College in Kentucky, from which he would earn a bachelor’s degree, he worked in the coal mines of Appalachia and to this day carries his old UMWA card as a reminder of his roots.
After completing a degree at Berea, he continued his studies, earning a master’s in industrial arts education from Murray State University, Murray, Kentucky. He then completed a Ph.D. in practical arts and vocational technical education from the University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri.
Glenn DuBois
With 23 colleges on 40 campuses located throughout the state, Virginia’s Community Colleges are committed to serving Virginia families, helping them acquire the knowledge and skills to seize the opportunities of today and tomorrow. As Chancellor of the System, Dr. Dubois leads the activities of 23 community college presidents serving over 240,000 students. It is interesting to note that 2 out of 3 public undergraduate college students in Virginia are enrolled in community colleges.
Carol Eaton
Dr. Carol Eaton is the President of the Frederick Community College in Frederick, Maryland. Prior to accepting her position at FCC, Dr. Eaton was Vice Chancellor of Community Colleges at the State Universities of New York (SUNY).
During her tenure at SUNY, Dr. Eaton was responsible for an impressive list of accomplishments, including completing the SUNY Community College Strategic Plan, conducting a SUNY-Wide Community College Nursing Survey, fostering new relations with SUNY’s Community Colleges and the State Department of Labor for work-force development, and instrumental on SUNY’s Capital Funding Taskforce.
Prior to her position as Vice Chancellor, Dr. Eaton was president of Clinton Community College in Plattsburgh, NY. Mr. Brad Young, Chairman of the Board of Trustees at Frederick Community College and also Chair of the Association of Community College Trustees (ACCT) expressed confidence in the Board’s selection of Vice Chancellor Eaton and was excited for the future of the FCC campus. Mr. Young stated that “after a lengthy and exhaustive nationwide search, we are fortunate that Vice Chancellor Eaton agreed to join the Maryland system and to lead our College as President.”
Bert Glandon
Dr. Bert L. Glandon was named the president for College of Western Idaho in July 2009. Dr. Glandon joined Idaho’s newest community college during its unprecedented growth stage. Under his leadership the College is focused on meeting this demand for affordable education and becoming an economic resource for the area’s business and industry. A seasoned leader with more than 31 years of community college experience, Dr. Glandon has held president positions at Arapahoe Community College (2002-2009) and Treasure Valley Community College (1981-2002).
Rufus Glasper
Rufus Glasper, Ph.D., certified public accountant and certified government financial manager, is Chancellor of the Maricopa Community Colleges, one of the nation’s largest multi-college systems. He has served in that role since 1993 and previously held District leadership positions for more than two decades. As the CEO, Dr. Glasper oversees all educational and administrative operations. He also provides leadership in matters of system-wide strategic planning, bringing all ten colleges and many learning centers into alignment with common goals and objectives. A staunch advocate for educational access and opportunity, Dr. Glasper has clearly established “inclusiveness, engagement and respect” as the guiding principles of his administration. An adjunct professor at Arizona State University, Dr. Glasper shapes future educational leaders through his graduate course in Higher Education Finance and Budget. Dr. Glasper is an active community member and was recently recognized by the Phoenix Business Journal as one of the 25 Most Admired CEOs and Top Level Executives in Arizona and in the same year, he received the Glendale Chamber Foundation and the City of Glendale Cesar Chavez Diversity Award for contributing significantly to creating a diverse and inclusive community.
Marie Foster Gnage
Marie Foster Gnage was appointed President of West Virginia University at Parkersburg in 2004. Prior to being named president, she was Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs at Raritan Valley Community College (NJ); Associate Vice Chancellor for Educational Services at Pima Community College (AZ); Vice President for Instruction at Central Florida Community College. Currently, Dr. Gnage serves on AACC Board of Directors, ACE Network Executive Board, West Virginia Humanities Council, St. Joseph’s Hospital Board of Trustees, The Parkersburg Art Center Board, the Presidents Academy Executive Council, the Black Diamond Girl Scout Council Board, the Economic Roundtable of Ohio Valley Directors, and the Workforce Investment Board (Region IV). She is the recipient of the Empowerment Inspiration Award given by the West Virginia Minority Business Development Center, the Women of Excellence Award for Trail Blazing awarded by Altrusa International, Inc., and the Phi Theta Kappa Shirley B. Gordon Award of Distinction.
Dennis Golladay
Dr. Dennis Golladay assumed his duties as President of Harford Community College in Bel Air, Maryland, in August, 2010, following three-and-a-half years as the Vice Chancellor of Community Colleges of the State University of New York and ten-and-a-half years as President of Cayuga Community College in Auburn, New York. While at Cayuga Community College, Dr. Golladay was instrumental in the creation of the NASA-affiliated Institute for the Application of Geospatial Technology, the only such entity on a community college campus in the nation.
Jean Goodnow
Dr. Goodnow has served as President of Delta College, University Center, MI, since 2005. She was elected to the Board of the American Association of Community Colleges in 2005 and served until her term ended in 2008. In 2006, Dr. Goodnow was elected to the executive committee for the Continuous Quality Improvement Network and she currently serves as the treasurer for the Michigan Community College Association. Dr. Goodnow received the Shirley Gordon Phi Theta Kappa National Award and in 2005 the Community College Alliance Leadership Award. In January, 2010, she received the Spirit of Martin Luther King Jr. Award.
Jack Huck
Dr. Huck has served in a variety of administrative positions at Southeast Community College in Lincoln, Nebraska starting in 1975 and has served as President and CEO since 1993. During this time he has been honored twice for his innovative leadership by the Nebraska Community College Association, has served as chair of the Education Council of the Nebraska Information Technology Commission, has served as a member of the International Presidential Advisory Board for the Chair Academy and was honored as a University of Nebraska Notable Alumni and selected as the Boss of the Year by the local chapter of the American Business Women’s Association. During his tenure the college has more than tripled its enrollment and continues to grow and prosper today.
Rose Harrell Johnson
Dr. Johnson serves as President of Haywood Community College, located in Clyde, NC. She has positioned the college as a leader in creativity, entrepreneurship, and sustainability. She advocates for workforce and economic development and the success of all students. She is co-facilitator of the North Carolina Community College System’s Code Green initiative to instill sustainability education and practices in its 58 community colleges. Dr Johnson serves on the board of multiple organizations including the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education, the Southern Association of Community Colleges and Schools, Folkmoot International, Southwest Regional Workforce Development, and Higher Education Research and Development Institute.
Jana B. Kooi
Jana Kooi is currently serving as the Campus President for the Open Campus of Florida State College at Jacksonville. Her prior experience includes leading two different campuses at Pima Community College in Arizona. During her time at Pima, she led the development of the institution’s first virtual college, including the creation of a Center for Learning Technologies to develop and support online learning. Additionally, Kooi built a dynamic business development enterprise to provide contact training on a national level. She is the Chair of the American Association of Community Colleges President’s Academy Executive Council. Her educational background includes a Masters in Educational Leadership from Western Michigan and a Bachelors in Secondary Education and Communications from Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
Audre Levy
Dr. Audre Levy has five advanced graduate degrees, four master’s degrees and a doctoral degree. The degrees include a Master of Arts in Education from the University of Michigan; a Master of Science in Educational Psychology from California State University, Long Beach; a Master of Science in Administration from California State University, Dominguez Hills; a Master of Divinity from Holmes Institute and in 1991, she graduated with a Doctoral Degree in Institutional Management from Pepperdine University. In 2004 was selected “Alumni of the Year” from Pepperdine University.
Audre has worked in all levels of education (elementary, junior high school, senior high school, adult school, community college, and four-year university) in various roles (instructor, counselor and administrator). She has held positions of leadership in Michigan, California, Florida, and Texas.
Shaun McKay
Dr. Shaun L. McKay is the President of Suffolk County Community College (SCCC), the largest community college in the State of New York. SCCC is a comprehensive publicly-supported, two-year, open enrollment institution, with campuses in Selden, Riverhead and Brentwood, and downtown centers in Sayville and Riverhead. The College has a current enrollment of over 26,000 credit students and 10,000 continuing education students.
Active in national and local organizations, Dr. McKay has received numerous awards for distinguished service in higher education.
He was selected from among an international pool of applicants as one of only 33 community college senior administrators to attend the prestigious Executive Leadership Institute sponsored by the League for Innovation. He serves as a Systems Appraiser for the
Academic Quality Improvement Program (AQIP) of the Higher Learning Commission-North Central Association and is a member of the Editorial Board of the Journal of Student Affairs Research and Practice (JSARP). Dr. McKay recently participated with 19 public, private, and non-profit organizations from across the country to explore ideas and concepts in lifelong learning in order to formulate a policy agenda for the American Council on Education (ACE)’s Center for Lifelong Learning. He also serves as a member of ACE’s Commission on Effective Leadership. Dr. McKay is a member of the faculty of the Future Leaders Institute through the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) and for the Executive Leadership Institute through the League for Innovation. He also serves as a member
of AACC’s Commission on Diversity, Inclusion, and Equity.
Ann McGee
Dr. McGee is in her 14th year as president of Seminole State College of Florida. During that time, she has seen Seminole State grow from one site located just north of Orlando to six distinct sites located throughout Seminole County. The College is experiencing phenomenal growth which includes 11 terms of double-digit enrollment increases. Seminole State College, formerly Seminole Community College, has just achieved four-year status and began offering its first bachelor’s degree in Interior Design last January. Dr. McGee is active on local and national boards including the American Heart Association, the Foundation for Florida State Colleges, the American Association of Community Colleges President’s Academy, the Phi Theta Kappa Foundation, and the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education. She was honored in 2010 by theOrlando Business Journal with the Publisher’s Award; by her alma mater, St. Petersburg College, with the “Outstanding Alumnus Award in 2009; by the Association of Community College Trustees as the #1 CEO in the nation in 2006; and by the Seminole Regional Chamber of Commerce with their Lifetime Achievement Award in 2004.
Bob Messina
Dr. Messina has served with distinction as President of the College since January, 1987. He is an experienced educator, researcher, college administrator, and contributor to local, state, and national affairs. Dr. Messina was instrumental in getting the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to fund the college’s Center for Public Health Preparedness that trains emergency responders. It is first to its kind at any American community college.
Jamillah Moore
Dr. Jamillah Moore has served as President of Los Angeles City College since 2007. She has worked on access issues in higher education for over a decade. She is the former senior consultant for the California State Senate Select Committee on College and University Admissions and Outreach. She then went to work for the Los Angeles County Office of Education as the Director of Governmental Relations. In 2004, Dr. Moore joined the System Office of the California Community Colleges as a Senior Vice-Chancellor for Governmental and External Relations. Shortly after taking the post she was officially appointed to the position by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. In 2005, she led the state recovery team for one year as the Interim President of Compton Community College, working to sustain educational opportunities for the students in that community. While there, she took the lead in advocating and obtaining successful passage of a $30 million recovery loan under Assembly Bill 318 for Compton College.
Maureen Murphy
Dr. Murphy has served as President of San Jacinto College South, Houston, Texas, since 2007. In Fall, 2008, she led the San Jacinto College district’s Instructional recovery efforts after Hurricane Ike and has facilitated subsequent instructional continuity planning in the event of future disasters. She is president-elect for the American Association for Women in Community Colleges, and affiliate council of AACC, and also serves as a commissioner on the Commission on Diversity, Inclusivity, and Equity.
Daniel Phelan
Dr. Phelan has served as President and CEO of Jackson Community College, Jackson, Michigan, since 2001. During this time he was recognized by the Association of Community College Trustees as the recipient of the 2006 Central Region Chief Executive Officer Award. In 2007, he received the Distinguished Service Award from the Michigan Community College Association, where he served as chairperson for 2006-07. In October, 2007, he received the National Council on Marketing and Public Relations District 3 Pacesetter of the Year Award.
Janet F. Smith
Dr. Janet F. Smith assumed the leadership role as President of Columbia State Community College in February, 2008. Dr Smith returned to her native Tennessee following a distinguished career which has taken her to North Carolina, Tennessee, New York, Kentucky, and Arkansas. She is very active in her community which includes service on the Nashville Symphony Council, Impact Center Inc. Board, Workforce Investment Board, Maury Alliance Board of Directors and Executive Committee, Williamson County-Franklin Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors, Maury Advisory Board to the First Farmers Bank, and Family Support Center Board. She is Vice President of the Tennessee College Association and a member of the national advisory board for the Higher Education Research and Development Institute.
Carol Spencer
Dr. Spencer has served as president of San Juan College since 2002. Prior to that she was president of Cedar Valley College, one of the Dallas County Community Colleges. She has served as the President of the Presidents’ Academy of the American Association of Community Colleges and has served on the Southern Regional Education Board. She was recently recognized as a Paul Harris Fellow by Rotary International and is a past winner of the Shirley Gordon medal presented by Phi Theta Kappa. Her areas of expertise include leadership development, strategic planning and technology application in educational leadership.
Mick Starcevich
Dr. Starcevich has served as President of Kirkwood Community College, Cedar Rapids, Iowa since November, 2004. His first position at Kirkwood was Executive Vice-President of Instruction from July, 2003 until November, 2004. Prior to that he served 34 years in K-12 as a teacher, associate principal, athletic director, principal and superintendent. In 2007 he received The Distinguished Alumni Award from Drake University.
Karen A. Stout
Dr. Karen A. Stout has served as president of Montgomery County Community College (Pennsylvania) since 2001. The College’s extraordinary use of technology in instruction earned it the Tops in Technology award in 2008 and 2009 as the most digital savvy community college in the country. Dr. Stout is Chair of the President’s Advisory Board to the Community College Research Center (CCRC) at Columbia University Teacher’s College, Vice Chair of the American Council for Education’s (ACE) Commission for Women, and is a Commissioner for the Middle States Commission on Higher Education. From 2005-2007, she served as President of the Pennsylvania Commission for Community Colleges. In 2005, she was named to the University of Delaware’s Alumni Wall of Fame for her outstanding professional and public service achievements. In 2006, she was named President of the Year by American Student Association of Community Colleges and as the Educator of the Year by the Tri-County Chamber of Commerce. In 2009, she was named as a Montgomery County Woman of Distinction.
Debbie L. Sydow
Dr. Debbie L. Sydow is the 7th president of Onondaga Community College, a comprehensive community college of more than 12,000 students and one of the largest community colleges in the State University of New York (SUNY) system. Dr. Sydow has guided record enrollment growth and a number of transformative projects, including a comprehensive strategic enrollment management program and centralized enrollment services (Student Central), a Regional Higher Education Center, a new Sustainability Initiative, a highly acclaimed Arts Across Campus series, and a capital improvements program that has resulted in the investment of more than $100 million in campus facilities. In addition, she has expanded community access to higher education through distance education and flexible program offerings, and secured gifts and grants totaling more than $25 million.
An active professional and civic leader, Dr. Sydow has served as President of the New York Community College Association of Presidents, Chair of the Board of Directors of the Institute for Community College Development at Cornell University, and as Chair of the American Council on Education’s Commission on Leadership and Institutional Effectiveness. She serves on several community and corporate boards, including CenterState CEO, the Excellus Advisory Board, CNY Works, Syracuse 20/20, and the M&T Bank Syracuse Regional Board. In recognition of community and college leadership, Dr. Sydow has received the Association of Community College Trustees (ACCT) 2008 CEO of the Year Award for the Northeast Region, Women in Business Award, YWCA Diversity Achievers Award, Girls Scouts Women of Distinction Award, The Zonta Club of Syracuse’s Crystal Award, The Post-Standard Achievement Award, the National Diversity Council’s Tri-State Most Powerful and Influential Women Award, the Phi Theta Kappa National Honor Society’s Shirley B. Gordon Award of Distinction, and the AIA CNY Chapter’s 2010 President’s Award.
Jill Wakefield
Dr. Jill Wakefield is recognized for the depth of her experience in community college education and community partnerships. She took the post as Chancellor of the Seattle Community Colleges in January 2009, after serving as president at South Seattle Community College for five years, where under her leadership, the college developed several new programs and an architecturally vibrant campus. The college was among the first two-year colleges in the state to be approved for an applied bachelor’s degree, and is now offering a successful BAS degree program in Hospitality Management. South also offers four-year degrees on campus through partnerships with City University, Eastern Washington University, and Heritage University. The new Northwest Wine Academy doubled in enrollment over the last year, and its student-produced wines have continued to win awards in industry competitions. South piloted a successful and innovative healthcare training program that combines English language skills with technical training. Earlier this year, the college inaugurated its Georgetown Campus, the former “Duwamish Branch,” with three new buildings and appointment of leadership for the Puget Sound Industrial Excellence Center. The Georgetown Campus is becoming widely recognized for developing training to support the growing green economy, and sustainable construction techniques through its apprenticeship programs.
Dr. Wakefield has taught as a part-time faculty member at Washington State University, Seattle University and Centralia College. Her research, presentations and publications have been focused on business and college partnerships that lead to more effective training and fund development. She has been honored as Communicator of the Year by the National Council for Marketing and Public Relations and was selected for the Institute for Executive Management at Harvard University and the Executive Leadership Institute sponsored by the League for Innovation in the Community College. Centralia College named Wakefield its “2007 Alumna of the Year.”
