The Wilkes Community College Board of Trustees on Monday announced the selection of three finalists – one from North Carolina and two from out of state – for the college presidency.
They are:
• Ken Ingle, Ed.D., who is chief officer of information services at Rowan-Cabarrus Community College in Salisbury. Ingle previously was executive director of emerging technology at Central Piedmont Community College in Charlotte. He has a Doctor of Education Degree in Community College Leadership from North Carolina State University; a Master of Science in Management Information Systems from Bellevue University; and a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with a major in Management Information Systems from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.
• Michael Rodgers, Ed.D., who is chief institutional officer and director of the Foundation of Owensboro Community and Technical College in Owensboro, Ky. Rogers previously was vice president of advancement and executive director of the Foundation at Owensboro Community and Technical College in Owensboro, Ky. He has a Doctor of Education in Higher Education Leadership from Maryville University in St. Louis, Mo.; a Master of Arts in Organizational Leadership from Western Kentucky University; a Bachelor in Chemistry from the University of South Carolina-Aiken; and an Associate Degree of Applied Science in Automotive Technology from Piedmont Technical College in Greenwood, S.C.
• Carolyn Strickland, Ph.D., who most recently was vice president of enrollment management and associate provost at Pennsylvania College of Technology in Williamsport, Penn. Strickland previously was assistant vice president of academic affairs at Pennsylvania College of Technology in Williamsport, Penn. Strickland has a Doctor of Philosophy in Educational Psychology from the Pennsylvania State University in State College, Penn.; a Master of Education in Student Personnel Services from the University of South Carolina in Columbia, S.C.; and a Bachelor of Science in Psychology and Urban Studies from the University of Pittsburgh.
Each of the three finalists will participate in a one-hour public forum the week of Jan. 8, 2024.
“We invite and encourage everyone to participate in the open forums. Forums will be made accessible to all faculty, administrators, staff, students, and the general public. Attendees will be asked to complete a feedback form to be given to the Board of Trustees for review,” stated a spokesman for the WCC Trustees.
Also that week, the WCC Trustees will interview finalists individually and each finalist will meet with senior college leadership and tour the community. The WCC board also will hear oral, in-depth reports on background checks on finalists. By week’s end, the board will select its first-choice candidate.
The WCC board will submit its first-choice candidate to Dr. Jeff Cox, state system president and immediate past WCC president, five days prior to the next state board meeting.
Cox will make a recommendation to the state board and the state board will then announce its decision to the WCC board, presumably approving the person recommended.
The president-elect and WCC board will then establish the start date of employment, sometime in early 2024. The search has been underway since Cox took the position of N.C. Community College System President in June 2023.