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Community College Daily
Candid conversations with presidents
By Matthew Dembicki
June 17, 2020
Lee Ann Nutt, president of Lone Star College-Tomball, Texas, didn’t
know what she wanted to do in college, and even after graduating
college she wasn’t so sure. After driving a tour bus for a while and
returning home, she answered an ad in a newspaper for a job at a local
community college. The entry-level position she eventually took at the
college changed her life.
John Rainone, president of Dabney S. Lancaster Community College
(DSLCC) in Clifton Forge, Virginia, also wasn’t sure what he wanted to
study in college. He thought he would be an accountant since he enjoyed
a bookkeeping class in high school. He focused to become a CPA in
college for about a year and a half before changing his major.
Kimberly Beatty, chancellor of Metropolitan Community College in Kansas
City, Missouri, thought she would go into her family’s barbecue
business after a stint with a four-year institution in Baltimore where
she taught adult basic education in a prison system. But a job at a
community college set her on a new career path.
All three presidents discussed their journeys into community colleges
and a whole more on a series of YouTube interviews hosted by Joe
Gilgour, who is completing his inaugural year as president of Mineral
Area College in Park Hills, Missouri. The series, called “Community
College Presidents Talking About Community Colleges,” delves into an
array of topics that challenge two-year college leaders, from handling
issues surrounding the pandemic — such as campus safety and enrollments
— to diversity, equity and economic mobility.
Learning from each other
Gilgour, who is a first-time president, says the idea for the periodic
one-on-one interviews using Zoom originated with him wanting to learn
from more-seasoned two-year college leaders, especially in how they are
addressing the health pandemic and the challenges it has presented to
colleges and their students. He tries to include a variety of colleges
from across the country, noting that colleges have some common
challenges as well as ones that are unique to their campuses and area.
“It’s an opportunity to learn from each other,” Gilgour says.
Below, the latest episode of Joe Gilgour’s interviews with college
presidents, featuring Lee Ann Nutt of Lone Star College-Tomball, Texas.
In the latest episode, Nutt of LSC-Tomball shared what she learned from
the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey in 2017, which caused catastrophic
flooding and many deaths in Texas and Louisiana, and how some of those
lessons apply to the pandemic. As a result of that experience, she
knows that people are resilient and that communities come together to
help in a crisis. She recalled when the local police chief called her
around 10 p.m. after the monster storm to ask if her college could
shelter displaced residents; she didn’t think twice and was calling for
volunteers as soon as she was off the phone.
Amarillo College President Russell Lowery-Hart, meanwhile, outlined the
extra hardships that at-risk students have faced during the pandemic.
To help students who didn’t have access to computers or the internet
and other supports during the campus closure, Lowery-Hart kept one
building open to ensure they could do their work. And he took shifts on
the circle desk, noting that he couldn’t ask other people to do it if
he wasn’t willing to do it himself.
Gilgour says he’s inspired by how his guests find ways to celebrate
students’ differences and to find the supports they need to succeed.
“All of them are so student-centered and so passionate about their
students,” he says. “These people are doing really tremendous work.”
Light-hearted moments
While the conversations cover issues that weigh on the minds of college
leaders, they also provide a glimpse into the personalities of the
presidents, often exploring lighthearted topics. Beatty discussed the
differences of barbecue in Kansas City, Texas and Virginia. Lowery-Hart
explained that he learned to tie his signature bowties — which he
hasn’t worn since the pandemic started — by watching YouTube videos.
Thuy Nguyen, president of Foothill College in Los Altos Hills,
California, said she relaxes by watching Korean dramas. Margaret
McMenamin, president of Union County College in Cranford, New Jersey,
is learning to play the guitar.
“It’s nice to hear those personal things,” Gilgour says.
It’s important to show that college leaders have personal lives and
interests outside the college, and to model that for employees, Gilgour
says. College presidents often encourage employees to carve out time
for themselves, especially during the current environment, but they
don’t always follow their own advice.
“Community college presidents are just like everyone else,” he says.
“We go through struggles as well. We’re humans. Dealing with these
things is a challenge for us as well. I think it’s important that
people see it.”
Gilgour also always asks his guests what are some of their professional
pet peeves. Those range from using jargon when talking with students,
to “higher ed-ing,” which means making something more complicated than
is needed. Among Gilgour’s main peeves is calling college students
“kids,” since so many students are not the traditional college-age and
have families themselves.
Selecting guests
In selecting guests, Gilgour mainly has reached out to colleagues he
knows from previous jobs, met through various events or follows on
social media. The first episode of his series, which launched on April
1, featured Steve Robinson, president of Owens Community College in
Ohio. They spoke about Robinson’s campaign to end the stigma around
community colleges (#EndCCStigma). Gilgour was on Robinson’s podcast
about a year ago and the two have stayed connected.
Since the first episode, Gilgour has chatted with nine other community
college presidents in episodes that are less than a half-hour each. He
gives his guests an outline beforehand about what the conversation will
focus on, but that’s usually a starting point.
“We just kind of talk and take it wherever it wants to go,” Gilgour says.
With Rainone, who he follows on Twitter, the two discussed using social
media as a tool. The president of the rural Virginia college explained
how he uses Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter to help him learn about
promising practices, access data and network. Rainone says social media
has helped him connect with donors, local media, legislators, alumni
and, of course, students (he’s learning to use Instagram to reach more
of them on their preferred medium).
If you’d like to be on Gilgour’s program, contact him on Twitter at @MAC_President.
“Send me a message on social media. We’ll get it set up,” he says.
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