Arkansas State University System President Chuck Welch named four finalists Tuesday for the chancellorship at a West Memphis community college.
The finalists are vying for the position at Mid-South Community College. The college, if approved by the Higher Learning Commission, will become Arkansas State University Mid-South on July 1.
The four, along with their campus interview dates, are:
• Rodney Ellis of Alexandria, La., former chancellor of Central Louisiana Technical and Community College in Alexandria, on May 26.
• Robert Gunter of Marion, vice president for workforce education at Mid-South, on May 20.
• Dwayne Scott of Cordova, Tenn., vice president for student services and enrollment management at Southwest Tennessee Community College in Memphis, on May 19.
• Debra West, deputy executive director for programs and accountability for the Mississippi Community College Board in Jackson, Miss., on May 27.
Each interview will include a meeting with Welch, a lunch with the Mid-South Community College board of trustees, a forum with faculty and staff members, a separate forum for the community, and a meeting with the 14-member chancellor search advisory committee.
Those taking part in the interview process can send feedback to the search committee, which will later meet to pare the list of finalists.
The winning candidate will succeed President Glen Fenter, who has led the 1,895-student college since it began in 1992. Fenter is leaving the college to lead the Greater Memphis Alliance for a Competitive Workforce, a nonprofit group that seeks to link industry leaders in the Delta with programs at educational institutions to produce a skilled industrial workforce.
He will step down from the presidency June 30 and will become a president emeritus July 1.
Under the merger with the ASU System, the president's role will turn into a chancellor's position. The merger was approved by trustees for the community college and the system in January.
Metro on 05/07/2015