Interim CEO
David C. Andrus is now interim superintendent/president of the Santa Clarita Community College District in California. He previously was acting chancellor of the district’s College of the Canyons (COC).
Prior to his appointment, Andrus — a U.S. Army veteran — was chair of COC’s political science department and president of the COC Academic Senate. He first came to COC in 2002 as an adjunct political science instructor.
CEO retirement announcements
Annette Parker, who has served as president of Minnesota’s South Central College since July 2013, announced her pending retirement. Her last day at the college will be June 30, 2025.
In a letter to college employees and partners, Parker said she is most proud of the college’s decision to join Achieving the Dream (ATD) in 2018. SCC’s ATD plan, “Just 1 More,” involved faculty, staff and students working together to narrow the achievement gap for specific populations, including first-generation, low-income, students of color and veterans.
“Over the past several years, our collective focus has been on making a difference ‘Just 1 More’ student at a time,” Parker said in the release.
That goal has resulted in SCC’s expanded services to students, which include a campus food bank, hiring social workers, providing financial literacy tools and developing a proactive advising model.
Among her many honors and recognitions, Parker this spring received the Shirley B. Gordon Award of Distinction from Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society. Known for her expertise in workforce development, Parker has served on numerous national boards and committees, including President Obama’s Advanced Manufacturing Partnership 2.0 Steering Committee, the MIT Work of the Future Task Force Advisory Board and the National Institute of Standards and Technology Manufacturing Extension Partnership Advisory Board. She is the current chair of the Council for Adult and Experiential Learning Advisory Council.
Parker’s wealth of understanding workforce issues stems from her own experiences. She worked for a decade with General Motors in Michigan when she decided to attend Lansing Community College. She later served at the Michigan college for 17 years as a lab assistant, faculty member and administrator before joining the Kentucky Community and Technical College System. There, Parker developed and led a National Science Foundation Advanced Technical Education National Center of Excellence. She served as the principal investigator of the Automotive Manufacturing Technical Education Collaborative project, which included partners from six of the world’s largest automobile companies, 34 automotive manufacturers and 34 community colleges.
“Dr. Parker came to Minnesota with a wealth of national connections and innovative ideas that were formed through her own considerable wisdom and experience and her close connections with business and industry,” said Minnesota State Chancellor Scott Olson. “Dr. Parker’s use of fine-grained data to support student success is a model not only in Minnesota but across the entire territory of the Higher Learning Commission. She has always been so generous helping others pass through the doors she opened. Smart, strategic, caring, wise, mentoring and focused are just a few words that describe her.”
Robert H. Sandel, president of Virginia Western Community College, has announced his plans to retire at the end of the 2024-25 academic year. His last day will be on June 30, 2025.
As its fourth president, Sandel has led the college since 2001, during which he has overseen more than $138 million in new building construction and renovations. The investment has made positive impacts on the local economy, quality of student education and preparation of the region’s workforce. Enrollment at the college more than doubled during his tenure.
“We are truly fortunate to have had his leadership at Virginia Western Community College during this pivotal time. His contributions have made our region a much better place,” said Todd Putney, chair of Virginia Western’s Local Advisory Board.
Virginia Western offers more than 100 programs and trainings to meet the region’s workforce needs, according to a release. With healthcare among the top local industries, the college has nine health profession programs, which is the third largest among the state’s 23 community colleges.
Sandel also strengthened the college’s fundraising. When he arrived at Virginia Western, its Educational Foundation operated out of a cubicle with no grants program and only about $1 million in assets under management, according to the college. Today, the foundation has $34 million in assets under management. The grants office has secured approximately $48 million in grant funding since its inception in 2002. The foundation has provide critical support for the college’s Community College Access Program, student scholarships, a student emergency fund and the Virginia Western Forward Permanent Endowment Fund.
Among his accolades, Sandel this spring was named to the Roanoke-Blacksburg Technology Council Hall of Fame, and he was awarded an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters from Roanoke College. This fall, he will honored by Junior Achievement of Southwest Virginia as the 2024 Laureate in the Southwest Virginia Business Hall of Fame.
Prior to Virginia Western, Sandel was president of Virginia’s Mountain Empire Community College for more than nine years. Before that, he served more than 20 years in the South Carolina technical college system.
Appointments
Christopher Reber, president of Hudson County Community College in New Jersey, has joined the Business-Higher Education Forum’s (BHEF) board of directors. He is the sole community college president to serve on the board. BHEF is a national network connecting corporate and higher education leaders to identify emerging skills and co-develop pathways that address talent gaps.
Jerry Wallace, president of Danville Community College (Virginia), has been selected to serve as the advisory board chair for the new Virginia Smart Manufacturing Accelerator, which is run through GENEDGE, a manufacturing and economic development organization in Virginia. GENEDGE last year received a $2 million federal grant through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to accelerate deployment of smart manufacturing technologies with small and medium manufacturers in Virginia.
“Serving in this capacity allows me to help guide initiatives that will not only boost our local economy but also set a standard for innovation and smart manufacturing across the Commonwealth,” Wallace said in a release.
Dennis Camacho has joined North Shore Community College (Massachusetts) as its inaugural director of academic success. He previously was assistant dean of organizational leadership and learning in the School of Education at Endicott College.
Jason Fowler has been promoted to vice president for information technology at Tallahassee State College in Florida. He has been with the college — his alma mater — since 2013 and most recently was its director of IT infrastructure.
Julie Parks has joined Community Colleges of Spokane (Washington) as vice president of workforce development. She comes from Grand Rapids Community College, where she was dean of workforce training. She previously was the Michigan college’s executive director of workforce training solutions.
Zak Pearson has been named the new business dean at Western Technical College in Wisconsin. He most recently worked for various educational institutions in China for the last nine years, teaching in both K-12 and higher education in business studies, accounting, marketing and economics.
Ne’Keisha Stepney is the new assistant provost of workforce development at Waubonsee Community College. Since joining the Illinois college in 2009, Stepney has served in various leadership roles, most recently as executive dean for business, technology and workforce education.
Kudos
Vivyen Ray, vice president of human resources and labor relations at County College of Morris (CCM), has been named to ROI-NJ’s Influencers: People of Color 2024 list. The business publication released the 2024 list to showcase and celebrate the depth of talent among workforce leaders of color in New Jersey. Ray, a former Army Reservist, is the only honoree employed by a community college.
“Vivyen Ray is a tremendous asset to CCM and we take great pride in having her on our senior leadership team,” CCM President Anthony Iacono said in a release. “Her outstanding contributions to the college and the community are exemplary and she is very deserving of this recognition by ROI.”
