On Monday, April 25, 2011, the Board of Trustees for the Connecticut Community Colleges selected Dr. Anna M. Wasescha to serve as the next president of Middlesex Community College in Middletown, Connecticut, succeeding Dr. Wilfredo Nieves who is now serving as the President of Capital Community College in Hartford.
Dr. Wasescha is currently serving as Special Assistant to the President of the Minnesota State Community and Technical College System at Fergus Falls, Minnesota. Prior to this appointment, she was Provost at the Fergus Falls Campus where she was responsible for all academic programs, student life, campus buildings and grounds, community engagement and new program development. In 2010, the Washington Monthly ranked the Fergus Falls campus of the Minnesota State Community and Technical College 37th among the top 50 community colleges in the country.
From 2006-2007, Dr. Wasescha was Associate Dean of the College of Education Doctoral Programs of Walden University, directing Walden’s on-line Ed.D. and Ph.D. programs. She joined Walden in 2005 as Assistant Dean of the School of Management. Prior to this she was an Adjunct Faculty Member and a consultant on Service Learning at Concordia University in Saint Paul, Minnesota.
Dr. Wasescha was the Founder and Director of Farm in the City in Saint Paul, Minnesota, a garden-based educational and cultural program for children and a supplemental English language program for new Americans from 1996 to 2007. In the eleven year lifetime of Farm in the City, she raised over one million dollars from individuals, corporations and foundations. She is a Board member and officer of Slow Food Lakes and Prairie.
Dr. Wasescha holds a B.A. in English Literature, an M.A. in Higher Education, and a Ph.D. in Educational Policy and Administration from the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis. She began her career in higher education at Hamline University in Saint Paul, Minnesota, as Director of Placement. She continued at Hamline to become Director of the Career Studies Center, Assistant and Associate Dean of Student Affairs.
Mrs. Virginia Zawoy, of Clinton, Connecticut, a member of the Community College Board of Trustees, served as Chair of the search committee for the presidency and worked with representatives of the college’s search advisory committee throughout the winter to conduct a national search for the college’s new president. Mrs. Zawoy attributed the successful outcome of the search to the match of Dr. Wasescha’s experience in academic and administrative leadership with the search committees’ requirements for a president. “Dr. Wasescha is an experienced educational leader who is committed to student success and meeting the needs of learners. Her astute academic leadership, her experience in developing educational programs and services, and her ability to build support for institutional priorities has led to her success and the success of the institutions she has served. Her dedication to community involvement is notable and will strengthen the relationship of the college with the communities it serves by expanding the college’s offerings in the Middletown region and at the college’s Meriden Center.”
Chair of the Board of Trustees, Louise Berry of Danielson, Connecticut, expressed her confidence in Dr. Wasescha’s ability to lead Middlesex Community College during the coming years. “Dr. Wasescha is well known for her dedication to students and to expanding learning opportunities to meet their needs. We look forward to having Dr. Wasescha join our Connecticut system of Community Colleges and to have her leadership in dealing with unprecedented challenges and the critical need to preserve access to community college education for the citizens of Connecticut.” Mrs. Berry also expressed her thanks to all the members of the Middlesex Search Committee including Trustees, Mrs. Virginia Zawoy, Chair of the Board’s search committee, Hugh Cox of Middletown, and Kenneth Wilson of Guilford.
Dr. Wasescha will assume her duties after July 1, 2011.
Does this woman know her job could be eliminated??? Why in the world would she come to Middlesex when the entire education dept is being consolidated. She should take note that she might be a short term president of this college. Govenor Malloy wants to flatten all colleges are they are top heavy. So at the community colleges they plan to get rid of all presidents, deans, human resources and payroll depts. No need for them. They will hire a coordinator who will oversee the college functioning which makes a lot of sense and very cost saving. Great job Govenor Malloy.
ReplyDeleteWhat is this college president being paid???? We have a budget crisis in CT. Do we need another community college president??? I thought they were going to consolidate the colleges. This makes a lot of sense.
ReplyDeleteMalloy's plan calls for elimination of the four system offices (Higher Ed, CCs, CSUs and Charter Oak) with all their management and separate boards of trustees into one streamlined department of higher education. The colleges themselves are not being merged or consolidated, in fact the theory is they'll be able to serve the students and communities better without the expense and bureaucracy of upper management. presidents and Deans (only 2-3 at a school like MxCC) have student contact and involvement, they arent nebulous bureaucrats. Overhead and administration at the CCs is FAR lower than at the CSUs, UConn or any private school
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