Richmond, Va., March 20, 2019 – The State Board for Community Colleges has certified three finalists for the position of president at Danville Community College. The finalists were among 80 applicants from across the nation.
The three finalists, in alphabetical order, are Dr. Thomas G. Coley of Granger, IA; Dr. Jacqueline M. Gill of Lee’s Summit, MO; and Dr. Daniel Mosser of La Plata, MD.
“The Danville Community College presidency is attracting a diverse and dynamic collection of talented leaders from across the country,” said Glenn DuBois, chancellor of Virginia’s Community Colleges. “That’s no surprise. The Danville area is a community that is on the rise, and the college is poised to take a leadership role in that with both traditional offerings and innovative workforce certification training programs. This an exciting time for the institution as well as the families and businesses it serves.”
Dr. Thomas G. Coley has worked in higher education for more than 39 years. He began his career as an assistant professor at the University of Maryland at College Park in 1980. Six years later he began working at California State University, Fullerton, serving as the college’s government and community liaison. Coley proceeded to hold senior executive positions with the Oregon State System of Higher Education; Cuyahoga Community College in Cleveland, Ohio; and Black Hawk College in Moline, IL before becoming the president of Scott Community College in Scott County, Iowa in 2005. He joined Indiana’s Ivy Tech Community College System in 2011 as the chancellor of the Northwest and North Central Region. Following a system restructuring, he became the chancellor of South Bend – Elkhart campus, where he works today. Coley earned a doctorate from the University of Wisconsin, Madison as well as a master’s degree and bachelor’s degree from Minnesota State University, Moorhead.
Dr. Jacqueline M. Gill has worked in higher education for more than 20 years. She began her career as the director of continuing education for the NE Campus of Tarrant County College in Hurst, Texas. In 2010, she became the college’s vice president of Academic Affairs & Community & Industry Education. Gill moved to Kansas City, MO in 2016 where she became the president of Metropolitan Community College. Prior to working in higher education, she worked for seven years as a social worker in the greater Dallas Fort Worth metropolitan area, including two years of recruiting candidates from underserved populations into healthcare career fields for the Dallas Fort Worth Area Health Education Center in Irving, Texas . Gill earned a doctorate, master’s degree and bachelor’s degree from Texas A&M University, and a separate master’s degree from the University of Texas at Arlington.
Dr. Daniel Mosser has worked in higher education and workforce development training for more than 34 years. He began his career as a program manager/instructor and graduate teaching assistant at the University of Maryland at College Park. In 1992, he became the director of Curriculum and Instruction and curriculum specialist for the Home Builders Institute and National Association of Home Builders. Mosser became the vice president for Education and Workforce Development for Associated Builders and Contractors, Inc. in 1996 before joining Prince George’s Community College in 2001 as vice president for Workforce Development and Continuing Education. He currently holds that same position at the College of Southern Maryland in La Plata, MD, which he began in 2010. Mosser earned a doctorate and master’s degree from the University of Maryland at College park, and a bachelor’s degree from California University of Pennsylvania.
The three finalists seek to succeed Dr. Bruce Scism, the college’s fifth president, who retired at the end of 2018 after serving in that role for five years. Dr. Betty Jo Foster has served as the college’s interim president since January. The finalists will each visit the college in late early April to meet with faculty, staff, students and community members.
Founded in 1966, Danville Community College serves the City of Danville, Pittsylvania County, and Halifax County. For more information about the college’s more than 100 programs of study, visit www.danville.edu.
About Virginia’s Community Colleges: Since 1966, Virginia’s Community Colleges have given everyone the opportunity to learn and develop the right skills so lives and communities are strengthened. By making higher education and workforce training available in every part of Virginia, we elevate all of Virginia. Together, Virginia’s Community Colleges serve more than 241,000 students each year. For more information, please visit www.vccs.edu.
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