Newsmakers

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Presidents on the move

Larissa Baia will serve as president of Hillsborough Community College’s Ybor City campus (Florida) as of August 15. She is currently president of Lakes Region Community College in New Hampshire, a position she has held since 2018.

Baia has two decades of higher education leadership experience, holding positions such as director of graduate and evening admissions at Lynn University in Florida and associate vice president of enrollment management at Manchester Community College in New Hampshire.

Jerry Wallace is now president of Danville Community College (DCC) in Virginia. He comes from Nebraska Central Community College where he has served as campus president for three years. Previously, Wallace was dean of workforce, technical and community education at New River Community and Technical College. He led the West Virginia college’s efforts to secure more than $1.5 million in grants in support of new programs, paid student internships and registered apprenticeships. He also helped to increase job placements for graduates, establish advisory committees and build academic pathways to employment.

Among his goals is to connect with employers and community members to get job seekers back to work, partnering with local school districts to establish pathways for students to continue their education, and to listen to the needs of the communities we serve.

“My approach to the new role is to highlight what DCC does well, grow enrollment, improve our partnerships, and develop a positive culture where everyone feels safe and supported,” he said in a release.

Wallace also serves on the American Association of Community Colleges‘ Commission on Economic and Workforce Development.

Kudos

Frank Friedman, now president emeritus of Piedmont Virginia Community College, is this year’s keynote speaker for the 60th Annual Independence Day Celebration and Naturalization Ceremony at Monticello in Virginia on July 4. This is the nation’s oldest continuous naturalization ceremony held outside a courtroom. Friedman, who retires July 1 after serving as president of the college for 23 years, is the first community college president to deliver the keynote address. More than 45 individuals will take the oath of citizenship at this year’s event.

Appointments

Janet Spriggs, president of Forsyth Tech Community College in North Carolina, was recently elected to serve as vice president of membership for the American Association of Women in Community Colleges (AAWCC), an affiliated council of the American Association of Community Colleges. Spriggs brings more than 25 years of experience in higher education to her role on the AAWCC board and will serve for four years in the position, beginning in July.

Wendy Bolt will serve as dean of academic affairs at Bluegrass Community and Technical College (BCTC) in Kentucky. In that role, she will lead dual credit, K-12 partnerships, the BCTC Testing Center, BCTC Adult Education, online learning and the Teaching and Learning Center. Most recently, she was the college’s associate dean of student success.

Lin Hillis has been named vice president of talent, inclusion and workforce culture at the Kentucky Community and Technical College System (KCTCS). She will lead the planning, developing, directing and implementing of system-wide initiatives to promote inclusion, diversity and pluralism in 16 KCTCS colleges and the system office. Most recently, Hillis was associate vice president of talent, diversity and leadership at Ohio State University.

Greg LaPointe has been promoted to vice president for student affairs and chief outcomes officer at the Community College of Rhode Island. He previously served as the college’s associate vice president of impact and institutional effectiveness since 2019.

Martin Maliwesky is now senior vice president of academic affairs/chief academic officer at Columbus State Community College (Ohio), where he had served on an interim basis. Maliwesky joined Columbus State in 2003 and has held various positions, including associate vice president, dean of enrollment services, and director of financial aid and veterans affairs.

Inez Moore has been promoted to the new position of dean of equity, inclusion and engagement at Riverside City College in California. Moore joined the college in 2017 as director of academic support and lead for its Promise Program, which serves 2,300 students each year.

Bill Solomon, dean of workforce education and advanced technology at Indian River State College, is a new advisory board member for the Florida Chamber Foundation Future of Work Florida Initiative. The program brings together businesses from across the state to work with the workforce and education community to tackle the talent crisis and re-imagine Florida’s workforce by helping workers attain the skills necessary for in-demand jobs.

Sabrina Terry has been hired as vice president of student services and enrollment management at Cape Fear Community College in North Carolina. She previously was dean of student services at Surry Community College in North Carolina.

Maryland’s Howard Community College has announced the appointment of Melissa Curtis as vice president of student success and Carl S. Moore as vice president of teaching and learning, effective August 1. Curtis most recently served as associate vice chancellor of enrollment management at Austin Community College (Texas), leading enrollment strategies for the district’s 11 campuses. Moore was formerly associate vice president for learning engagement at the University of the District of Columbia.

Obituary

Mary Ann Settlemire, who served at the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) for more than 30 years before retiring in 2009, passed away on June 23. At AACC, Settlemire was assistant vice president of professional services and director of meetings and council relations. She joined AACC (then called the American Association of Community and Junior Colleges) in 1977 as a program associate for veterans affairs.

About the Author

Matthew Dembicki
Matthew Dembicki edits Community College Daily and serves as associate vice president of communications for the American Association of Community Colleges.
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