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MATC
District Board Selects Dr. Bettsey Barhorst as College President and CEO
Madison,
WI . . .The Madison Area Technical College (MATC) District Board today
voted unanimously to select Dr. Bettsey L. Barhorst as the president and
chief executive officer of the college. She will begin the position January
15, 2005. The announcement ends a national search that began nine months
ago.
“Dr.
Barhorst brings to MATC exceptional leadership and academic experience
gained within two- and four-year college environments,” states John
H. Ashley, MATC District Board chair. “As a college president, she
has proven her effectiveness in sharing a vision, securing new resources
within a challenging budget environment and building a strong sense of
community both internally and externally. In addition, she is an energetic
and dedicated educator who demonstrates a genuine commitment to students
and lifelong learning on a daily basis.”
In particular,
Ashley says the MATC District Board was impressed that Barhorst's leadership
and educational philosophies were so closely aligned with those MATC has
embraced. “Dr. Barhorst's commitment to the learning college culture
and her hands-on experience with AQIP, the continuous improvement reaccreditation
process we are following, means that from the start she will be on the
same page with our board and staff.”
“I
am delighted and honored to be joining MATC, which has a remarkable reputation,”
states Barhorst. “The college is involved in many exciting and innovative
student-centered initiatives. I'm looking forward to learning so much
more about the college and the people, businesses and communities MATC
serves in south-central Wisconsin.”
Barhorst
was one of two finalists who visited MATC late last month to meet with
college staff, faculty, students, business and community leaders. Based
on open forum sessions held during the visits, the MATC District Board
received overwhelmingly positive feedback regarding Barhorst.
Ashley
also acknowledged and thanked Dr. Rose Ann Findlen for “her superb
leadership as acting president over the past 15 months.” He explained
that as provost for learning, she will continue to oversee college operations
and will be instrumental in working with Dr. Barhorst to facilitate the
transition of the president position. “Dr. Findlen has worked extraordinarily
hard to ensure MATC offers a high quality learning environment for our
students, as well as to develop a collaborative, productive and stimulating
working environment for employees. We want to see her efforts and the
improvements she has accomplished at MATC continue."
Barhorst
has served as president of Hawkeye Community College in Waterloo, IA since
July 2001. She oversees a comprehensive two-year college with eight locations
serving about 25,000 individuals. During her tenure at Hawkeye, Barhorst
led the passage of two referendums totaling $37 million, each with more
than 60% voter approval; developed consortiums to train high school students
for highly skilled manufacturing and health sciences careers; and improved
internal communication and trust while transforming the college's external
image. She also has guided administrative negotiations and worked collaboratively
with two collective bargaining units.
Prior
to joining Hawkeye, Barhorst worked for 15 years at Illinois Central College
in East Peoria, where her responsibilities included serving as vice president
for Planning and Information Services, affirmative action officer, chair
for the English Department and president of the full-time faculty union.
In the mid-80s she served as the director for student advisement for Webster
University's Geneva campus in Switzerland. With 25 years of teaching experience
ranging from fourth grade to master's level, Barhorst considers herself
first and foremost a teacher.
She holds
a Ph.D. in educational administration and foundations from Illinois State
University; a master's degree in management and human resource development
from Webster University in Geneva, Switzerland; a master's degree in speech
communication from Bradley University; and a bachelor's degree in speech
communication from Fontbonne University.
She is
the current president of the Iowa Association of Community College Presidents
and serves on the American Association of Community Colleges' Commission
on Learning and Communications Technologies.
MATC
is one of the largest of the Wisconsin Technical College System's 16 colleges
and serves about 50,000 individuals annually. It provides a comprehensive
curriculum of technical, liberal arts and science, adult basic education
and life enrichment studies and activities, as well as customized employee
training. MATC provides training in more than 100 career programs. It
awards associate degrees, vocational diplomas and certificates, and offers
non-degree courses. The college serves all or parts of 12 counties located
in south-central Wisconsin and offers instruction through five campuses
and various other locations throughout the district.
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Last
Modified:
November 19, 2004
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