On the move
John Cook, who has served as president of Springfield Technical Community College (STCC) in Massachusetts for nearly a decade, has announced he will step down next summer.
Cook became STCC’s sixth president in 2016 and led the college through a significant period of growth and change, including the challenges brought on by the Covid pandemic. Over the past nine years, STCC has ushered in more than $100 million in capital projects and infrastructure investments, including the Richard E. Neal Cybersecurity Center of Excellence, according to the college. Also under Cook’s leadership, STCC developed innovative degree and training programs for in-demand fields, such a baccalaureate pathway in nursing with Westfield State University, a baccalaureate manufacturing pathway with Northeastern University and an online water treatment training.
Prior to STCC, Cook was vice president of academic affairs/chief academic officer at Manchester Community College in New Hampshire. He also worked for 12 years at Granite State College, where he was assistant dean of faculty and also taught research methods part-time.
Michael Gavin, who has served as president of Michigan’s Delta College since 2021, plans to leave the college at year’s end to focus on building a coalition to defend and promote the value of higher education.
Student success and equity was a focus for Gavin at Delta, which saw increases in enrollment and graduation rates, as well as significant progress in narrowing equity gaps for African American and Hispanic students, according to the college.
“Delta College has made great strides in achieving our strategic plan goals under Dr. Gavin’s leadership and we thank him for his service to Delta and our communities,” said Delta College Board Chair Stacey Gannon. “He is an exceptional example of what a college president should be, and we are proud of the path he has chosen, continuing to lead the charge in protecting the values and commitments of higher education for all.”
Gavin is a founder of the Education for All coalition, which has been convening to share ideas about how to navigate challenging environments on college campuses, especially in regards to diversity, equity and inclusion. Prior to Delta, Gavin was vice president of learning at Anne Arundel Community College in Maryland, and also served as senior academic administrator at Prince George’s Community College, also in Maryland.
Carmen Simone has been named the permanent president at North Dakota’s Lake Region State College (LRSC), where she has served in an interim role since July 1.
Simone has served for more than 30 years in higher education, particularly in two-year college leadership. She previously was campus dean and CEO at Dakota College at Bottineau (DCB) since August 2022. Prior to that, she was president of Western Nebraska Community College.
Earlier in her career, Simone was vice president and dean of the University of South Dakota Community College for Sioux Falls (South Dakota), president of Trinidad State Junior College (Colorado), provost and vice president of academic affairs at Lewis-Clark State College (Idaho) and vice president of academic affairs at Casper College (Wyoming), where she also taught chemistry for more than 10 year.
Interim CEO
Peter Lindstrom, provost and vice president of academic affairs at the Community College of Denver (CCD), is now the college’s interim president.
Lindstrom has served CCD for more than 15 years in various academic and leadership roles, including dean of instruction for multiple academic pathways, director of the Teaching Learning Center & Online Learning, and faculty member in developmental English.
“Peter Lindstrom is a trusted leader whose deep knowledge of CCD, unwavering commitment to students, and long record of advancing equity and innovation make him the right person to lead during this transition,” said Diane Duffy, who made the appointment last month as interim state chancellor.
Kudos
Michael Baston, president of Ohio’s Cuyahoga Community College (Tri-C), is the 2025 recipient of the Entrepreneurial President of the Year award from the National Association for Community College Entrepreneurship. The association noted that Tri-C, under Baston’s leadership, has developed 24 new employer-aligned programs since 2022 in high-growth sectors such as advanced manufacturing, clean energy, healthcare and AI.
“With 94% of credit students and 98% of non-credit students either entering the workforce, continuing their education or pursuing advanced credentials, Tri-C has demonstrated a powerful return on its entrepreneurial mission and investment,” said Rebecca Corbin, president and CEO of NACCE.
Vicki Karolewics, president of Wallace State Community College in Alabama, was recently honored by Rep. Robert Aderholt, who presented her with a copy of the Congressional Record from the 119th Congress that recognizes the college’s outstanding achievements and national distinction.
Under Karolewics’ leadership, Wallace State was named one of the top community colleges in the nation by the Aspen Institute, earning the Rising Star designation in the 2025 Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence. Karolewics also testified this year before the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health & Human Services and Education, which Aderholt chairs.
Retirement announcement
Monty Sullivan, president of the Louisiana Community and Technical College System (LCTCS), has announced he will retire in early 2026, after leading the system for more than a decade and serving in higher education and workforce development for more than 30 years.
Since taking the helm in 2014, Sullivan has led the system in achieving record student achievement, national recognition and a clear alignment of education with Louisiana’s economic and workforce needs. LCTCS nearly doubled its number of graduates, tripled foundation assets and invested more than $500 million in new and modernized training facilities across the state, according to a release. Sullivan supported the creation of the M.J. Foster Promise Program, Louisiana’s landmark $10.5 million annual scholarship for adult learners, and forged deep partnerships with business and industry to strengthen Louisiana’s workforce pipeline. He also was a vocal champion of extending Pell Grant eligibility to certain workforce education programs.
At the national level, Sullivan testified before both the U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee and the U.S. House Committee on Education and Workforce, advocating for Workforce Pell and reauthorization of federal career and technical education programs. In 2021, he received the Marie Y. Martin Chief Executive Officer of the Year from the Association of Community College Trustees.
“Dr. Sullivan’s leadership has transformed what it means to be a community college system,” said Tim Hardy, chair of the LCTCS Board of Supervisors. “He led with vision, belief and compassion. He put students first. Under his guidance, LCTCS has become a national model for how community and technical colleges can power economic growth and individual opportunity.”
Prior to serving as LCTCS president, Sullivan was chancellor of Delgado Community College (Louisiana), executive vice president of LCTCS, and vice chancellor for academics and research at the Virginia Community College System. He also served as interim president of Virginia’s Eastern Shore Community College and vice chancellor of academic services and student affairs at Louisiana Delta Community College. Earlier in his career, Sullivan worked at Louisiana Tech University as director of the Center for Rural Development and as director of continuing education at Louisiana State University.
Appointments
Cory Clasemann, president of Southeast Technical College, has been appointed to the Governor’s Correctional Rehabilitation Task Force, as part of an initiative to guide the expansion and improvement of rehabilitation services in South Dakota. The group — comprised of representatives from law enforcement, judiciary and legislative bodies, and community organizations — will assess programming for the inmate population, study best practices for re-entry models, explore faith-based and Native American–focused rehabilitation programs, and recommend how to best use the expanded space in a planned new correctional facility.
DeAndre Howard is the new vice president of academic affairs and student services at Virginia’s Danville Community College. He previously was dean of student engagement and chief student services officer at Spartanburg Community College in South Carolina.
Valerie Newton has been named executive director of marketing and communications at Fayetteville Technical Community College in North Carolina. She comes from Sampson County Schools, where she was director of communications, marketing and community engagement.
Jeremy Poore has been named to the new position of director of outdoor economy at North Carolina’s McDowell Technical Community College, where he will focus on training for outdoor recreation and other outdoor economy pursuits. His previous position at the college was coordinator of trail construction and sustainability.
Darlette Samuels is the inaugural chief strategy and innovation officer at Jackson State Community College in Tennessee. She comes from Lane College, where she held multiple leadership roles, including vice president for institutional advancement and chief of staff.
Guilford Technical Community College (GTCC) has announced an executive reorganization and reassignment plan to more effectively accomplish strategic goals for the next five years. Among the appointments:
- Beth Pitonzo, who has served in executive roles at GTCC for more than a decade, has been promoted to senior vice president for college and workforce instruction.
- Cheryl Bryant-Shanks, GTCC’s associate vice president of human resources for the past five years, is now vice president of human resources.
- Manuel Dudley, the college’s vice president of workforce and continuing education for the past five years, has been named GTCC’s first chief officer for strategic and industry partnerships.
- Kristen Corbell has been promoted to associate vice president for institutional research and adult education. For more than six years, she has served as the college’s director of institutional research.
At Rockland Community College (RCC) in New York, Jonathan Batista is now chief financial officer, and Melanie Rie is associate provost. Batista most recently was executive director of finance for auxiliary enterprises at Queens College in the City University of New York system. Rie, a member of the RCC community since 2002, has served as faculty member, faculty Senate chair and dean of the School of STEM.
