Volunteer State Community College Presidential Search Advisory Committee appointed. Public forum set for Jan. 26.
The Search Advisory Committee leading the Tennessee Board of Regents' search for the next president of Volunteer State Community College has been appointed and will meet for its orientation session and a public forum Friday, Jan. 26, 2024.
Board of Regents Vice Chair Emily J. Reynolds will chair the 19-member search committee. Board Members MaryLou Apple, Layah Garton and Todd Kaestner will also serve as committee members, along with representatives of the college’s faculty, staff, students and alumni, and business and civic leaders from across its northern Middle Tennessee service area. The full list of search committee members is below.
The public forum, which provides the public and campus community an overview of the search process, will be held virtually via Zoom teleconferencing, starting at 1 p.m. CT Jan. 26. To join the Zoom forum at that time, click here and enter the meeting ID and passcode below: https://academic-search.zoom.us/j/84418418357?pwd=05Zozc1cM1JWpkljUD492Z3s2bSm0Y.1&from=addon
Meeting ID: 844 1841 8357
Passcode: 193979
Anyone needing assistance may contact Mary Ann Hammonds, Executive Assistant to the TBR Chancellor, at maryann.hammonds@tbr.edu.
The search committee will review applicants and nominees and recommend finalists for the presidency. The finalists will be announced and introduced to the community in campus public forums. After the forums, TBR Chancellor Flora W. Tydings will conduct final interviews and review input from the campus community and the public to select one candidate for recommendation to the Board of Regents, which will appoint the president.
The next president will succeed Dr. Orinthia T. Montague, the college’s fourth president, who passed away unexpectedly on Sept. 22. Dr. Russ Deaton, TBR executive vice chancellor for policy and strategy, is serving as interim president. The president is the college’s chief executive officer.
The Board of Regents approved criteria for the next president during a special called meeting Oct. 20. The Board invites applications and nominations for the position by March 25, and anticipates the next president will be in office by July 1. Full details – including the presidential criteria, how to apply and submit nominations, information about the college, and the public forum access information – are posted on the Vol State presidential search webpage at https://www.tbr.edu/hr/executivesearches/president-volunteer-state-community-college.
Volunteer State is one of the 13 public community colleges and 24 colleges of applied technology in the College System of Tennessee, governed by the Tennessee Board of Regents. Vol State is a comprehensive, two-year postsecondary institution with its main campus in Gallatin, branch campuses in Cookeville, Livingston and Springfield, and other teaching sites in its 11-county primary service area. The college enrolls approximately 7,000 credit-seeking students and has more than 450 full-time employees. Additional information is available on the college’s website at volstate.edu.
Members of the search advisory committee:
Regent Emily J. Reynolds
Board of Regents Vice Chair
Search Committee Chair
Regent MaryLou Apple
Board of Regents
Regent Todd Kaestner
Board of Regents
Regent Layah Garton
Board of Regents
Laura Black
Associate Professor of English
& Speaker of Faculty Council
Faculty Representative
Leah Frauendienst
Associate Professor of Mathematics
Faculty Representative
Maia Dennis
Student Representative
Sam Garrett
Student Representative
Leah Balli
Director of Admissions
Staff Representative
Emily Short
Vice President for Student Services
Staff Representative
Karen Mitchell
Vice President of Resource Development
& Executive Director, VSCC Foundation
Staff Representative
Alumni, Business & Community Representatives
Kim Baker
CEO, Gallatin Chamber of Commerce
David Gregory
Former TBR Chancellor & VSCC Foundation Past Chair
Jimmy Johnston
Forward Sumner
Evan Jones
Alumnus
Amy New
President, Cookeville-Putnam County Chamber of Commerce
Steve Parker
Board Chair, VSCC Foundation
& CPA, Blankenship CPA Group
Dewayne Scott
Deputy Commissioner, TN Department of Labor & Workforce Development
& VSCC Foundation Board Member
Cliff Wightman
President, Tennessee Colleges of Applied Technology Crossville & Livingston
The College System of Tennessee is the state’s largest public higher education system, with 13 community colleges, 24 colleges of applied technology and the online TN eCampus serving approximately 140,000 students. The system is governed by the Tennessee Board of Regents.