Board to vote Wednesday on Tracy Hall as next president for Southwest Tennessee Community College

Pending approval by the Tennessee Board of Regents Wednesday, Tracy D. Hall is in line to become the next president at Southwest Tennessee Community College.

The Board will meet at 9:30 a.m. CDT at the TBR System Office in Nashville to vote on several recommendations from TBR Chancellor John Morgan, including Hall to replace Nate Essex, who previously announced his plans to retire from the Memphis-based community college on June 30.

Hall was chosen from a field of 65 applicants and four finalists who visited the campus late last month. She will assume the leadership role at Southwest on July 13.

“We are fortunate to have Dr. Hall join the Tennessee Board of Regents,” said TBR Chancellor John Morgan. “We expect she will be the right leader at the right time to help address the unique opportunities at Southwest. Her credentials are excellent, and her experience in engaging all constituents and building a strong, successful and collaborative team while recognizing unique strengths and opportunities is the right fit.”

Hall earned a doctorate from the University of Missouri-Columbia in educational leadership and policy analysis, a master’s degree from Wichita State University and a bachelor’s degree from the University of Missouri-St. Louis. 

She has served as vice president for academic affairs at St. Louis Community College-Forest Park since 2011, where she is responsible for more than 30 career and technical programs, academic support services and instructional resources, stackable credentials for workforce development, faculty oversight, and the African American Male Initiative, among others.

She previously served for six years as associate dean of instruction at Metropolitan Community College-Penn Valley in Kansas City, Mo. There she managed strategic planning efforts, articulation agreements, career and technical program reviews and P-16 initiatives. She taught speech, mass communication and intercultural communication at the campus from 1999-2004.

Two years prior she led Kennesaw (Ga.) State University’s minority student retention services. Hall was an instructor of speech and intercultural communication courses at St. Louis Community College-Meramec from 1993 until 1997.

In addition to her membership in numerous professional and civic organizations, Hall has participated in the Thomas Lakin Institute for Mentored Leadership, the American Association of Community College’s Future Leaders Institute, National Council on Black American Affairs Mid-Level Management Institute, and the Kaleidoscope Women’s Leadership Conference.

Her complete application materials are available at http://tinyurl.com/tracydhall

Southwest Tennessee Community College is a member of Tennessee’s Community Colleges, a system within the Tennessee Board of Regents. Southwest is a comprehensive, multicultural, public, open-access, Memphis-based college that provides citizens with an effective teaching and learning environment designed to raise educational levels, enhance economic development and enrich personal lives. Southwest is the state’s largest community college.

The May 27 meeting is open to the public and the press. Dial-in access will be available. Those wishing to attend or participate should contact Sonja Mason at sonja.mason@tbr.edu or 615-366-3927 before 4:30 p.m. CDT May 25 so building security clearance or phone access can be arranged. Anyone with a disability who wishes to participate should use the same contact to request services needed to facilitate attendance. Contact may be made in person, by writing, by e-mail, by telephone or otherwise.