Three finalists were selected at a board meeting on March 7 to replace current Austin Community College (ACC) President and CEO Stephen Kinslow who announced last year that he will be retiring this summer.
Dr. Donald Doucette, Dr. Katherine Persson, and Dr. Richard Rhodes were selected as finalists to become ACC's next president, according to a press release from ACC.
Doucette is the current Senior Vice President and Provost of Ivy Tech Community College in Indianapolis, Indiana and also a finalist to become president of a number of other colleges including Eastern Iowa Community College District, Harrisburg Area Community College in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and Washtentaw Community College in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
Doucette was named president of Ivy Tech in March 2008 and throughout his 30-year career, Doucette has served as a faculty member and administrator for some of the nation's top community college systems, according to a press release from Ivy Tech.
Persson is the current President of Lone Star College (LSC)-Kingwood, one of five colleges in the Lone Star College System in The Woodlands, Texas). She was named president of LSC-Kingwood in Aug. 2008 after serving two and a half years as president of the Portland Community College Rock Creek Campus in Oregon, according to Persson's biography on LSC's website.
While at Kingwood College, Persson served as the biology department coordinator, associate dean of science, health care, and applied technology, and vice president of educational programs and student development, according to her biography.
The third finalist, Rhodes, also serves as a college president. He is currently the president of El Paso Community College (EPCC) in El Paso, Texas.
Rhodes became President of El Paso Community College on December 1, 2001, according to his biography on EPCC's website.
Prior to serving as EPCC president, Rhodes served as the Vice President of Business Services at Salt Lake Community College in Salt Lake City, Utah since 1994. He also served with the El Paso Community College from 1983 through 1994 in the role of Vice President of Financial and Administrative Services and Interim President, according to his biography.
"Each of these finalists would enhance ACC's commitment to meeting the region's diverse educational and training needs," said Dr. Barbara Mink, ACC board chair. "The search has integrated college and community input over the course of many months, and we are confident this process will result in a leader who will further our mission and continue the vision laid out in the Master Plan."
The Master Plan is a comprehensive strategy for accomplishing the college's core goals to manage growth and change.
Finalist were selected after a collaborative search was conducted with a 25-member Presidential Search Advisory Committee composed of trustees, college faculty and staff, students, community and business leaders, and representatives from public and higher education.
The next step in the presidential search timeline will be campus visits from all three finalists at ACC on April 4-6 to take part in forums with faculty, staff, students, and the public.
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