(statement issued by EICCD)
Eastern Iowa Community Colleges (EICC) has announced Brian Kelly as the next President of Clinton Community College (CCC). He currently serves as Vice President of Planning, Institutional Effectiveness and External Affairs at Lane Community College in Eugene, OR.
Kelly will be taking over the reins from retiring President Karen Vickers. His appointment follows a nationwide search. The selection process narrowed the list of applicants down to a final three. Those three spent a full day at the college, meeting with faculty, staff, community members and the EICC leadership team.
“This was an extremely intensive process and we were very pleased with the number of highly-qualified applicants we received for the position,” said EICC Chancellor Don Doucette. “Brian stood out as the clear consensus choice of the college and community members involved in the process. His wealth of experience will be a tremendous asset to Clinton Community College and the entire Eastern Iowa Community Colleges. We look forward to welcoming him to the community.”
Kelly’s appointment is expected to be formally approved by the EICC Board of Trustees at their regular January meeting. He will begin his duties in Clinton on February 1.
Kelly’s roots are in the Midwest. He graduated from Kishwaukee Community College, just 80 miles east of Clinton in Illinois. He earned his Bachelor’s Degree from Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, his Master’s from Marylhurst University in Oregon and is a Doctoral candidate at Creighton University in Omaha.
“I am very excited to be joining the team at Clinton Community College,” Kelly said. “It was a pleasure to have the opportunity to meet so many great people during my recent visit. I look forward to working collaboratively with the faculty, staff, students and the community to move the institution forward and focus on the success of our students.”
Kelly previously served as Vice President for College Services at Lane. Prior to that, he was Lane’s Division Dean of Conference and Culinary Services. He has lead a range of diverse departments including the Budget Office and College Finance, Information Technology, Culinary and Hospitality Management programs, Institutional Research, Marketing and Public Relations, The Center for Meeting and Learning, Facilities Management and Planning, Public Safety, the Titan Store, the NPR affiliate public radio station, College Health Clinic, Specialized Support Services, Custodial Services and Printing and Graphics.
He has served on the technical advisory committee for the City of Eugene’s Sustainable Business Initiative and was active in the Lane County Food Distribution plan as part of the Oregon Solutions initiative. He is currently serving on Oregon Governor Kate Brown’s Campus Safety Work Group.
Kelly was also selected into the inaugural class of the Aspen Institute’s Presidential Fellowship for Community College Excellence, a rigorous, ten-month executive leadership program for aspiring community college presidents led by the Aspen Institute and Stanford Educational Leadership Initiative.
Retiring President Vickers has served as college president since 1996. She has been with the college since 1984.
CCC is one of the three colleges, including Scott and Muscatine, that comprise the Eastern Iowa Community Colleges. CCC enrolled more than 1,600 students this past fall semester. Its locations include the main campus in Clinton, the Technology Center on Manufacturing Drive and the Maquoketa Center.
