麻豆传媒

 麻豆传媒 Board of Trustees named former president Steve McCleery as interim president of the college during its regular meeting on Sept 16.2021. Before president of the board, Pat Chappelle, made the announcement, board member Guy Kesner praised the persons who were interviewed for the job. Kesner told the News-Sun on Friday he was very pleased with MCleery鈥檚 selection as interim president. 鈥淚 think the expertise McCleery brings and his association with ACCT (Association of Community College Trustees) will be great for the college while we search for a new president,鈥� Kesner said. Board member Evelyn Rising said she agreed with Kesner鈥檚 remarks at the meeting. Friday afternoon she told the News-Sun she believes the college vice presidents who interviewed for the interim president鈥檚 job are outstanding. 鈥淲e certainly didn鈥檛 want to disrupt what鈥檚 working and we want to build on our strengths. We have an excellent team. All of our applicants were very strong,鈥� Rising said. Board member Hector Baeza, who was attending the board meeting by way of ZOOM, said he and the board did not want to appoint someone who would come in and try to make a lot of changes. 鈥淐ontinuity with current staff is very important,鈥� Baeza said.  鈥淚 think it鈥檚 a good thing to be have Dr. McCleery here while we look for a president. He is already familiar with the campus and the staff and he knows people in the ACCT, so he will be able to help us find the next president. We have a great team and we want to have a smooth transition,鈥� said Travis Glenn, the board member who made the motion to appoint McCleery. Friday morning, Chappelle told the News-Sun the special meeting held earlier in Sept. for the purpose of interviewing candidates for the interim position was educational for the board. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 think any of us regrets the five hours we spent interviewing the vice presidents,鈥� she said. 鈥淲e are so impressed with the depth of experience and talent each one of these people have. Each one of them is vital to the way the college operates and any one of them would have been a good choice for interim. We interviewed all six of them and then we interviewed Dr. McCleery last.鈥� As the board began to consider possibilities before the interview meeting, they didn鈥檛 think McCleery would be interested in the job, said Chappelle. 鈥淏ut a former board member contacted him and when we learned he was interested, we interviewed him,鈥� she added. McCleery told the News-Sun Friday afternoon that several people called him about applying for the job before the former board member called. 鈥淥f course, I was interested. I spent 32 years at the college. I鈥檝e done pretty much every job there is on the campus,鈥� McCleery said. 鈥淎nd while I鈥檝e stayed out of Dr. Sharp鈥檚 way these last six years, I鈥檝e kept up with things and I鈥檓 current on all issues related to community colleges because of my activities with ACCT. I know most of the people in Santa Fe and ACCT. So I said, 鈥榃ell, if they鈥檙e interested in another old person, I鈥檇 like to interview.鈥欌�� McCleery said he went into the interview 鈥渢o make his best case. I thought the interview was invigorating.鈥� McCleery and his wife Linda moved to Lubbock after his retirement from the college six years ago. 鈥淢oving to Lubbock was a great choice for me. I love the people there. They鈥檝e been helpful to us, but we love the people in Lea County and we are so excited to be coming back,鈥� said McCleery. 鈥淭he truth is, they hired me based on Linda. She鈥檚 a Hobbs Eagle and a Lovington Wildcat. She is so excited.鈥� McCleery said he is not interested in returning to college administration long term. 鈥淚t鈥檚 turning into a young man鈥檚 game. I鈥檓 sure that as we begin a search for a new president we鈥檒l have close to 70 applicants who would love to come to 麻豆传媒.鈥� Chappelle said the board does not yet have a contract to offer McCleery, but one will be negotiated with her and Glenn representing the board and with McCleery representing himself. 鈥淚n all the years with the college, I鈥檝e never had an attorney or an agent,鈥� McCleery said. 鈥淭here鈥檚 no reason to have one now.鈥� McCleery expects to be on the job Oct. 1. 鈥淚鈥檓 going to walk around the campus and see the things that are new, meet the people I don鈥檛 know, get reacquainted with the people I do know. There鈥檚 always some worry when someone new comes in and they need to be reassured that everything will be all right.鈥�

Dorothy N. Fowler may be reached at education@hobbsnews.com.