Interim CEO
At the Kern Community College District in California, Tom Burke will serve as interim chancellor and Zav Dadabhoy will become deputy chancellor.
Burke, chancellor emeritus of the college district, retired in 2021 after serving as chancellor since 2017. He was previously chief business officer for the district. Prior to that, Burke was vice president of finance and administrative services at Bakersfield College, which is in the district. Dadabhoy has served as interim president of Bakersfield College in 2021.
The appointments were made in response to the anticipated departure of Chancellor Sonya Christian, who will leave to become chancellor of the California Community Colleges system on June 1.
Acting CEO
Marianne Van Deursen is now acting president of Warren County Community College in New Jersey.
Van Deursen has served as the college’s vice president of academics since 2018 and has held various positions over her 27 years at the college, including adjunct instructor, medical assisting program coordinator/instructor, assistant dean of medical assisting and distance education and dean of academics.
Kudos
Jay Allen, president of Itawamba Community College (ICC), was recently named a 2023 Top CEO by the Mississippi Business Journal.
Under Allen’s leadership, ICC has been noted for its healthcare education, online and baccalaureate programs and has been named among the top 150 community colleges in the country by the Aspen Institute.
CEO retirement announcement
Timothy L. Beard, president of Florida’s Pasco-Hernando State College (PHSC), plans to retire effective January 31, 2024. He has served the college for 17 years, including nearly nine years as its CEO. Previously, Beard was PHSC’s vice president of student affairs and enrollment management for more than eight years.
During his tenure as president, the college has built the $18 million Instructional Performing Arts Center, which opened in 2021. And the college is currently working on plans to construct a new $5 million Burn Center and Fire Academy training center at the East Campus. Its Dade Campus will house the future STEM Student Success and Community Engagement Center with a projected $25 million budget. In addition, PHSC is establishing a Corporate College at the Brooksville—Tampa Bay Regional Airport in collaboration with industry partners.
“The board has been impressed by Dr. Beard’s steadfast dedication, his tireless service and student-centered leadership,” John Mitten, chair of the college’s district board of trustees, said in a release. “The sincerity, warmth and enthusiasm he brings to the presidency continuously forges strong stakeholder relationships, enhances the college’s image locally and throughout the state and garners support for the college and our programs.”
Prior to PHSC, Beard held staff, faculty and administrative positions at Florida A&M University, Florida State University and the University of South Alabama in Mobile.
Obituaries
John F. Helling, who served for 23 years as president of North Hennepin Community College (NHCC) in Minnesota, died on January 11 at age 94. He started at the college in 1967, then called North Hennepin State Junior College, and retired in 1990 as its longest-serving president.
When Helling started, the college leased space in a local junior high school building, where it was located for three years. Over that time, enrollment grew from 414 to more than 1,600 students, according to a 1968 Minnesota Star article. Soon, Helling sought a new campus location and over his tenure it kept expanding. He also oversaw the addition of new programs to serve students’ needs, including introducing evening classes in 1967 and a weekend college in 1988 to help working students. The college also served as a General Education Development testing center to provide classes for those who needed to complete their high school education, according to NHCC release.
The Minnesota Star, which did a series of articles on local community colleges in 1968, noted that Helling was a “solid booster for the concept of the community college that serves the education, cultural and social needs of its area.” It noted that under his leadership, the college’s curriculum reflected “the needs of the community through courses, institutes, clinics, conferences, concerts and exhibits,” citing courses in supermarket management, business marketing and real estate appraisal.
Helling was also a proponent of changing the name from junior college to community college, arguing that “North Hennepin is a community institution. It is in and of the community,” NHCC said in an obituary of its former president.
Helling also supported giving to the institution, establishing its foundation in 1981, and establishing the second-largest scholarship endowment at the college, according to NHCC.
Donald Snyder, who served as president of Lehigh Carbon Community College for 13 years, passed away on March 4. He was 71.
Snyder served as CEO of the Pennsylvania college from 2000 to 2013. Prior to that, he was a state representative from 1981 to 2000.
A 2014 article in the college’s Aspire magazine highlights Snyder’s accomplishments as president “that would see sweeping changes transform and expand the college.” They included a new campus and expanded presence at its Allentown location. He also increased educational opportunities through programs such as distance learning, dual enrollment and partnerships with other higher education institutions. Under his leadership, enrollment more than doubled, with a 10-fold increase in scholarship aid and a 20-fold increase in the college’s endowment through its foundation.
“Dreams don’t just happen,” Snyder said in the article. “It takes people with vision and the willingness to bring that vision to life with hard work, effort and sharing. It takes people who have a great love for this community to make sure that opportunities do become realities.”
During his time in state office, Snyder served as House Republican Caucus chair from 1995 to 1996 and as House Majority Whip from 1997 until his retirement from the legislature.
Appointments
Jason Marsala is now North Shore Community College’s dean of enrollment services. He previously was the college’s interim associate vice president of student affairs operations and has also served as director of student accounts.
Jennifer T. Padlan has been named vice president of human resources and organizational development at HACC, Central Pennsylvania’s Community College. She previously served on the president’s cabinet at Allegheny College (Pennsylvania) as director of human resources and payroll.
Jacquelyn Schreiner will serve as executive director of the Western Technical College Foundation. She has served as the Wisconsin college’s foundation development officer since 2013. Previously, Schreiner was associate alumni director at Winona State University and as a district field executive for the Girl Scouts of Riverland Council.
Chanelle Whittaker is now vice president for equity, culture and talent at Prince George’s Community College (Maryland). For the past 13 years, she has served in higher education leadership in Sacramento and Oakland, California.
Tracy Yates is now director of workforce and business solutions at Clark State College after serving as interim director. An alumna of the Ohio college, Yates previously was its director of conference services.
