A Tennessee Board of Regents (TBR) search advisory committee has selected three finalists for the next president of Walters State Community College. The finalists will participate in open forums with the campus community and the public July 21, 22, and 23, the next step in the selection process.
The finalists are:
Dr. Laura E. Boyer, vice president for academic success at Northeast Lakeview College in Universal City, Texas. She earned an Ed.D. in educational leadership at Lamar University, a master of education in adult education at Texas A&M University-Kingsville, and a bachelor of arts in psychology and music at the University of the South.
Dr. Jason A. Pierce, provost and executive vice president at Young Harris College in Young Harris, Ga. He earned a Ph.D. in English at the University of South Carolina, a master of arts and a bachelor of arts in English at the University of Maine, and a master of letters (M.Litt.) in Scottish literature at the University of St Andrews in Scotland.
Dr. Saul Reyes, vice president for enrollment management and student affairs at the College of Central Florida in Ocala, Fla. He earned an Ed.D. in higher education leadership at the University of South Florida, a master of arts in counseling at West Virginia University, and a bachelor of science in youth ministries and biblical studies at Gordon College.
Their résumés and more information about the search process and the college are posted on the Tennessee Board of Regents (TBR) website at https://www.tbr.edu/hr/executivesearches/president-walters-state-community-college.
The finalists will participate in open forums with faculty, staff, students and the public, with the schedule below. Each forum is scheduled for 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. ET, in the Dr. R. Foster Chason Lyceum on the lower level of the Dr. Wade B. McCamey Student Services Building on the Morristown campus. The forums also will be livestreamed via Zoom teleconferencing, accessible through the links on each date here: Dr. Reyes on Monday, July 21, Dr. Pierce on Tuesday, July 22, and Dr. Boyer on Wednesday, July 23.
After the forums, Tennessee Board of Regents Chancellor Flora W. Tydings will review input submitted from the public and campus community and conduct more interviews to select one candidate for nomination to the Board of Regents. Comments on the candidates may be submitted through an online survey link that will be posted on the search webpage above on July 21.
The Board of Regents will consider the chancellor’s recommendation in a special called meeting tentatively set for the first week in August. The date, time and other meeting details will be announced when they are finalized. The meeting will be held by teleconferencing and will be livestreamed and archived on the TBR website.
The next president will succeed Dr. Tony Miksa, the college’s fourth president, who was appointed president of a community college in Kansas. Dr. Tom Sewell is serving as interim president until the next president takes office. The president is the college’s chief executive officer.
The Board of Regents approved criteria for the next president during a special called meeting March 27. The 16-member search advisory committee was appointed in April, composed of four Board of Regents members, representatives of the college’s students, faculty, staff and alumni, and civic and business leaders from the community. An initial public forum on the search process was held April 22. After the position was posted, the committee reviewed applications and interviewed selected candidates before recommending the finalists.
