Barton Community College now had three vice presidents instead of one, following an administrative structural change that was approved Tuesday by the college’s board of trustees.
Elaine Simmons, dean of Workforce Training and Community Education, had been serving as acting vice president since January. Her new title is vice president of instruction. Mark Dean was promoted from dean of administration to vice president of administration, and Angela Maddy was promoted from dean of student services to vice president of student services.
Previously, the vice president of instruction and student services was the only person with the VP title. Dr. Robin Garrett was chosen for that position in June of 2015 after a nationwide search.
Barton President Dr. Carl Heilman said there had been three vice presidents of instruction and student services during his 11 years at the college. That indicated the responsibilities might need to be split into two positions.
“It was appropriate to look at that closely,” Heilman said. Elevating Mark Dean’s position will give him more autonomy, Heilman added. College deans will answer to the three vice presidents.
Each of the vice presidents has worked at the college for a decade or longer.
In the past year, Simmons has helped create a leadership institute at Barton to guide current employees who may grow into future administrative roles.
Other changes in administrative contracts: Brian Howe was promoted from interim dean of academics to dean; and William Nash, who will soon retire as dean of Fort Riley Technical Education and Military Outreach Training, was granted a one-month contract, and will serve concurrent with Kurtis Teal, who was granted a 12-month contract for the position. The dean’s position formerly held by Simmons is now open.
“I think these are all changes for the positive,” Board Chairman Mike Johnson said.
Contracts for management staff and head coaches were also approved. These remain unchanged from last year. There is still an opening for a head coach for softball. Heilman said he hopes to recommend a person for that position next month.
“Trevor (Rolfs, director of athletics), has received 12 applications for this position and three of them in particular stood out,” Heilman said.
New personnel
Other personnel approved Tuesday filled existing positions that had become vacant. They are: Kurt Konda, sociology instructor, and Carol Beck, developmental lab coordinator, both at the Barton County campus; and Nicole Martin, part-time customer service representative at Fort Leavenworth.
BioSig renewed
In other business, the board renewed its service contract with Biometric Signature ID, for $61,800. BioSig is the proctoring and identity verification software used for BartOnline courses to establish that a student who registers in distance education courses is the same student who participates in and completes the work and receives academic credit.
