The President of Wilkes Community College is employed by and responsible to the Board of Trustees. The sixteen-member governing Board includes representation from each of the three counties served by the college. The Board follows the “Principle of Shared Governance” in fulfilling its governance and fiduciary responsibilities, and in its relationship with the President. The President serves as the college’s Chief Executive Officer, and is required by the Board to provide leadership for the institution. The President also oversees educational effectiveness in all aspects of institutional operations. The President fulfills these expectations under the supervision of and consistent with policies adopted by the Board, and as may be established by the State Board of Community Colleges, or in compliance with state and federal statutes. In this work, the President provides clear and consistent counsel and analysis to the Board with regard to substantive policy issues, trends in higher education, operational risks and threats to the institution, and opportunities and challenges that require Board deliberation and action. Furthermore, consistent with the shared governance model, the President implements all policies, budgets, and other actions taken by the Board in its governance and fiduciary roles. The President demonstrates a commitment to the mission of the college through active internal and external engagement, and jointly with the Board, college, and community, builds a vision for future enrollment growth and financial sustainability and prosperity. It is also required that the President lead with an ethical, equitable and transparent approach in all manners of service to the Board, college, and greater community.

The President’s primary responsibilities include developing, maintaining, and assessing the quality of academic programming, student support, and administrative services. The execution of these responsibilities collectively creates a climate that enhances student learning, growth, and personal development; stimulates innovative and engaging approaches to instruction by faculty; encourages professional staff to explore efficient service delivery models and processes; and maximizes opportunities for student achievement, employment, or transfer. Responsibilities also include the administration of the institution in such a manner that enables it to fulfill its mission, vision, values, goals and objectives, as articulated in a comprehensive strategic plan. Such work should include both internal and external constituents throughout the service area. Presidential leadership in the recruitment, selection, and professional development of stellar faculty and exceptional professional staff and solicitation of their input in decision-making processes. This is critical to both institutional and student success.

The President also has an advocacy and ambassadorial duty to represent the interests of the college. This is accomplished through active participation with local, regional, state, and national elected and appointed officials. Interactions with these officials fosters trust in the good works of the institution, secures public and private resources to support the development and operation of the college, provides funding required to sustain instructional excellence, comprehensive student engagement and scholarship support, and visibly connects WCC with the communities it serves. To that end, the President engages educational, governmental, corporate economic development, and public service organization officials to explain the college’s portfolio of services, and to offer its support. The President also appears before and speaks with community, civic and cultural organizations throughout Wilkes, Ashe, and Alleghany counties. In addition, the President serves as an ex-officio, non-voting member of the Board of Directors of the Wilkes Community College Foundation, promotes one of the premier music festivals in the country – MerleFest, encourages use of The Walker Center by external entities, and invites visitors to explore the beauty of the WCC Gardens. In effect the President is a visible and engaged representative of Wilkes Community College to any audience within and beyond the boundaries of the area it serves.