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the clackamas print An independent, student-run newspaper since 1966 Clackamas Community College, Oregon City, OR
Wednesday, Feb. 10, 2010
Volume 43, Issue 12
Candidates vie Avalanche for dean’s chair of students takes ski bus By Jaime Dunkle The Clackamas Print
Bill Leach, the dean of Campus Services, has retired after working hard at Clackamas Community College for more than six years. A hiring committee has been interviewing applicants who are seeking the highly responsible position. The committee chose three finalists and are now carefully selecting who will be the new dean of Campus Services. The hiring committee was comprised of several staff members who will be working with or under the new dean. Applicants were required to have familiarity with the entire campus and all of the functions that go on. Although it was critical for the candidates to have an understanding of how the campus operates, previous experience with the campus was not imperative, according to one of the committee members, Kirk Pearson, the Campus Services director. “There are an awful lot of aspects to the position that make it challenging, exciting and rewarding,” Pearson said. The dean of Campus Services has innumerable responsibilities. The position entails an extensive and broad range of duties. Some of them are supervising and managing construction, building maintenance, plant engineering, shipping and receiving, grounds, environmental health and safety, emergency response and overseeing and delegating budget priorities. The dean works with between 40 to 50 staff members. The salary offered is between $80,510 and $107,228 per year, according to the Human Resources department. “It’s a very important job on campus,” said Janet Paulson, media and marketing specialist and hiring committee member. “I think that everybody
works hard to get the right person for the job and for the college.” Paulson said that there were more than a dozen original applicants. After they were assessed, the hiring committee narrowed it down to seven exceptional candidates. “When you have seven qualified people, it’s challenging, and you want to make sure you make the best decision for the college,” Paulson stated. The seven interviewees were reduced to three finalists. Bob Cochrane, Kerry Carpenter and Stephen Poage were chosen by the hiring committee, according to Courtney Wilton, the vice president of College Services. Leach has left behind a strong leadership legacy. He influenced the department to thrive, according to Pearson. Some efforts Leach brought to the college were cost efficient remodels and energy conservation methods. However, Leach said that he did not implement anything by himself but with the collective efforts of the Campus Services department. “Everything that happened there was a team effort,” Leach said. “The innovative ideas came from the team, the actions and changes that were made all came from the team.” Clackamas was much different before Leach became dean of Campus Services. There were some people that weren’t doing their jobs; Leach said he had to fire 10 people during his first year. It gave opportunities to more capable and committed staff members, according to Leach. The department of Campus Services ended up receiving the Annual Team Award during Leach’s first year. “I have no question at all about the future of the college,” Leach said. “Even though money gets tight from time to time, we’ve got the kind of leadership that will find its way through that and still allow the rest of us to do progressive things.”
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Matthew Ostergren Clackamas Print
Courtney Wilton, vice president of College Services, runs through information on the final three applicants for the position of dean of campus services.
Photo illustration by Julie Sanchez CNO and Brian Steele Clackamas Print