Announcement & Invitation | Community College of Philadelphia

May 28, 2025

Presidential Search Announcement & Invitation to Attend Public Forums

On behalf of the Community College of Philadelphia Board of Trustees, we are pleased to announce that we have begun the search to identify the next President of Community College of Philadelphia. We are fully committed to conducting an equitable, inclusive, and transparent national search that will attract a strong and diverse pool of candidates from throughout Pennsylvania and the nation.

The Association of Community College Trustees (ACCT) has been selected to assist us with the Presidential search process. ACCT’s assistance will include providing support with the development of the Presidential Profile, recruiting highly competitive candidates, and working extensively with the College and the Board of Trustees. ACCT has conducted over 750 community college searches and brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise to our process. ACCT’s mission is to strengthen community college governance through education and advocacy. Marie Gnage, Ph.D., and Luke Robins, Ph.D. will serve as our ACCT search consultants and will assist the College throughout this important process.

Presidential Profile Development: Public Forums & Survey

An important step in the Presidential search process is the development of a Presidential Profile. We will host three (3) public forums to listen to your input, which will assist with the development of the Presidential Profile. The first public forum will take place on Tuesday, June 10, 2025, and the additional forums will take place on Wednesday, June 11, 2025. The entire College community is invited and encouraged to participate in a discussion about the qualities, characteristics, and qualifications we are seeking in the next President of Community College of Philadelphia, and the opportunities and challenges facing the College in the years to come. Additionally, you will have the opportunity to ask questions about the Presidential search process. The discussions will be facilitated by Marie Gnage, Ph.D., and Luke Robins, Ph.D., ACCT search consultants.

We invite everyone to attend the one-hour public forums on June 10 and 11, 2025:

6/10 at 3:30 p.m., CATC, Room 341
6/11 at 10 a.m., CBI, Room C3-05
6/11 at 2 p.m., NERC, Room 124

Please share the forum information with those who have an interest in Community College of Philadelphia and wish to attend. No RSVP is needed.

In addition to the public forums, ACCT developed a brief survey that we hope you will complete if you are unable to attend one of the forums. The anonymous responses to the survey will also be used to inform the development of the draft Presidential Profile. The survey is available here: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/BTRMNCF.

Please submit your survey feedback no later than 9 p.m. (ET) on June 11, 2025.

The Presidential Search Committee

The Presidential Search Committee will review the confidential applications, interview semifinalist candidates, and identify the final candidates to be forwarded to the Board of Trustees for consideration. The Search Committee will be announced soon.

Final Candidates

All final candidates will participate in open forums at Community College of Philadelphia and the finalists will interview with the Board of Trustees. We anticipate the open forums taking place in October and we will provide the dates, times, and location once they are confirmed. All employees, students, and community members will be invited to attend the open forums and complete feedback forms, which will be reviewed as part of the deliberation process.

Recruitment

Our recruitment efforts will involve an open and thorough national search, seeking qualified candidates from all regions of the country. ACCT specializes in one-to-one recruitment of community college leaders. Additionally, to assist with this process, advertisements will be placed in the Chronicle of Higher Education and other major publications and websites.

Presidential Search Webpage

The Community College of Philadelphia website will include information on all aspects of the search. The Presidential search webpage will be developed in the coming weeks and will include key information including the timeline, Presidential Profile, and information on how to apply.

We will continue to keep you updated on this important process. If you have any questions or suggestions, please feel free to reach out to our ACCT search consultants: Marie Gnage, Ph.D., at gnagedm [at] gmail.com (gnagedm[at]gmail[dot]com) or (304) 615-1928 (mobile) and Luke Robins, Ph.D., at lrobins57 [at] gmail.com (lrobins57[at]gmail[dot]com) or (501) 276-0996 (mobile).

Sincerely,

Harold T. Epps, Chair, Board of Trustees, Community College of Philadelphia

Sheila Ireland, Chair, Presidential Search Committee