New CEO
Jeremy L. Pickard will become president of Southwest Wisconsin Technical College on July 1. He is currently vice chancellor of academic affairs at Eastern Iowa Community Colleges.
Over his career, Pickard has built strong partnerships with K–12 districts, business and industry, and regional organizations, according to a release from the college. He helped lead a successful $40 million bond initiative that created four new Career Advancement Centers, expanding career and technical education access for rural and urban learners.
At Eastern Iowa Community Colleges, where he served for nearly 25 years, Pickard helped the system grow enrollment and strengthen retention and completion. Prior to becoming vice chancellor at the district, he served as dean of agriculture, business and professional development; dean of instruction at Muscatine Community College; associate director of the Advanced Technology, Environmental and Energy Center; and a member of the business faculty.
“Dr. Pickard is a thoughtful, collaborative leader who understands the transformative role technical colleges play in strengthening communities and expanding opportunity,” said Chris Prange, chair of the Southwest Tech District board. “His experience advancing student success, building partnerships, and leading institutional growth positions Southwest Tech well for its next chapter.”
Kudos
Lane Glenn, president of Northern Essex Community College (Massachusetts), has been selected as this year’s co-recipient of the Hon. John E. Fenton Citizenship Award from the Rev. James T. O’Reilly OSA Division Eight Ancient Order of Hibernians, which is America’s oldest Irish Catholic Fraternal Organization. The award recognizes individuals who have made outstanding contributions to improve the Lawrence and Merrimack region.
Obituary
Christine Johnson McPhail, a former community college president who served as a higher education consultant for more than 15 years, passed away at age 80 on March 1 after a battle with cancer.
From 1995 to 1998, McPhail was president of Cypress College, serving as the California two-year college’s first Black and first female leader. She later joined Morgan State University (Maryland) as the founding professor and director of its community college leadership doctoral program. She also served as a professor at the John E. Roueche Center for Community College Leadership at Kansas State University, before succeeding her husband, Irving Pressley McPhail — who passed away from Covid in 2020 — as president of Saint Augustine’s University (North Carolina). She served in the role for nearly three years.
McHail then served as a leadership coach for Achieving the Dream for more than a decade before starting her consulting business.
In 2010, McPhail received the American Association of Community Colleges’ Leadership Award, which is presented to individuals whose accomplishments and professional contributions to the community college field have been outstanding.
McPhail authored and edited several books and numerous articles on leadership and higher education. In 2022, she co-edited Urban Voices, Racial Justice, and Community Leadership: African American CEOs of Urban Community Colleges Speak Out (Rowman & Littlefield), with Curtis Ivery, chancellor of the Wayne County Community College District in Michigan. It collected essays focused on how Black presidents of six urban colleges are addressing the challenges in their communities. In 2021, she co-wrote the book Transformational Change in Community Colleges, (Routledge) with Kimberly Beatty, chancellor of Metropolitan Community College in Kansas City.
McPhail got her start at community colleges as a student, attending Fresno City College in California. Later, she worked as a counselor at Contra Costa College, and then as an assistant dean of students before becoming dean at College of Alameda. Her 1987 doctorate dissertation was titled “Academically Underprepared Students in the California Community Colleges.”
Appointments
Julie Kirkland-Poirier has been promoted to dean for academic success at Northeast Lakeview College, which is part of the Alamo College District in Texas. She previously served for five years as the college’s dean of student success.
Sheila Thimba is now senior vice president for finance and administration at Kingsborough Community College, which is part of the City University of New York system. She comes from Harvard University, where she served for 11 years as dean of administration and finance at Harvard College.
