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GCCC interviews second interim president candidate
Published 7/29/2010 in Local News
BY RACHAEL GRAY
The Garden City Community College Board of Trustees interviewed the second of two candidates for the job of interim president Wednesday at GCCC.
The trustees interviewed Joseph W. Emmons, Lawrence, in closed session. Last week, they interviewed Dr. Joseph C. Birmingham, Weatherford, Texas.
The trustees have called a special meeting for tonight, during which they may make a decision to hire one of the two candidates, or decide to not hire either, said Steve Quakenbush, GCCC director of information services.
Trustees are using the Association of Community College Trustees, or ACCT, to find candidates. They received five applications, and selected Emmons and Birmingham for in-person interviews.
Emmons, who has served repeatedly as an interim president and in educational consulting positions since 2002 as the director of curricular affairs for the Kansas Board of Regents, said he knows the importance of community colleges.
"The community is strengthened by an active community college," Emmons said.
He said community colleges, like GCCC, offer technical classes, transfers, adult basic education and industrial programs, all of which teach vital skills, in addition to academic programs.
Emmons said he is familiar with GCCC, and said James H. Tangeman who served as president before Carol Ballantyne, was a mentor for Emmons. Tangeman was the president at Colby Community College while Emmons was on the faculty there.
Emmons, while on the Regents staff, served as associate director of academic affairs, specializing in community colleges and technical schools and colleges. He coordinated and managed procedures, projects and activities relating to academic and instructional issues of the 19 community colleges and 10 technical education institutions of Kansas, as well as technical education and workforce development, according to a GCCC release. While serving as director of curricular affairs, Emmons oversaw academic programs for the entire Kansas higher education system, including the six state universities.
Emmons earned a doctorate in higher education administration at the University of Kansas in 1994, a master of secondary education at Fort Hays State University in 1980, and a bachelor of arts in political science at the University of Nebraska, Lincoln, in 1968.
He has served since May on the board of trustees for Brown Mackie College of Kansas City and Salina. He worked as an adjunct faculty member for the University of Kansas Humanities and Western Civilization department. He served as interim director for Kaw Area Technical School and assisted in the search for director and dean.
He also served as interim president for Manhattan Technical College and worked as administrative consultant for Wichita Area Technical College.
Emmons worked as a GED examiner for Lawrence public schools, was a consultant for the Accrediting Commission of Independent Colleges and schools and served as interim campus director in Wamego for Highland Community College.
He also worked as an educational consultant for KU and directed operations at Matanuska-Susitna College in Palmer, Ala., an extended campus of University of Alaska, Anchorage.
Emmons began his career in education as an instructor at Colby Community College, while also working as news director and evening news anchor for KLBY TV, was the director of the Thomas County Museum, and director and curator for the Willa Cather Pioneer Memorial, Red Cloud, Neb.
Once an interim leader is on the job at GCCC, plans call for the college to design and launch a national search for a permanent president. Both candidates have served one or more interim terms in the past, lasting up to several months each. During GCCC's last national search for a president, when Ballantyne was hired in 2000, the process took approximately six months.
There is no timeline yet for when a selected interim president would take office, but it's possible that a person could be in place by the time GCCC begins fall semester classes on Aug. 18.
Since Ballantyne's departure, day-to-day management of the college has been up to a three-person team of administrators appointed by the board.
Ballantyne served as president for 10 years, and retired in June to focus on her health.
The Administrative Management Team includes Kevin Brungardt, dean of academics; Lenora Cook, dean of technical education; and Dee Winger, executive dean of administrative services.
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