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EGCC presidential finalist believes community colleges change people’s lives
By Denise Dick
YOUNGSTOWN
Jimmie Bruce, a finalist to become president of Eastern Gateway Community College, is a 25-year community college veteran who views the institutions as a way to affect and change people’s lives.
Bruce, vice president of academic success at Northwest Vista College in Texas, is the fourth and last finalist brought to the college’s campuses as college trustees pursue a replacement for Laura Meeks. Meeks, president for 15 years, is retiring in July.
“Community colleges create a level of access at an affordable cost to people who may never have otherwise gone to college,” Bruce told the five people who attended a public forum Thursday at the Valley Center.
It’s been a personal goal for him to be a college president, and part of what appeals to him about EGCC is its rich history. EGCC is based in Steubenville but operates the Valley Center in downtown Youngstown, the Warren Center and other locations in Columbiana, Mahoning and Trumbull counties.
It started as a technical college before becoming Jefferson Community College and then expanding to cover four counties as Eastern Gateway.
“There was a real void here,” he said, referring to the Mahoning Valley, “and you stepped up to fill that void.”
In his current post, Bruce teaches at least a class per year. It’s a way for him to interact with students and faculty and to see things from their perspective. It’s also something he enjoys.
If he’s chosen for the EGCC job, he likely won’t teach soon because he’ll have a lot to learn.
But he’d like to teach down the road if his schedule permits it.
“I would never tell anyone that I would never teach again,” Bruce said.
He also interacts with students with regular meetings with student organizations and through student forums focused on a particular topic.
Although Bruce acknowledged he lacks collective bargaining experience — Texas is a right-to-work state — he has a background in conflict resolution. He believes if both parties develop mutually agreed-upon criteria in negotiations and keep students’ needs in mind, they can agree on contract issues.
Bruce, a Kentucky native, previously served as dean of student success and chief student affairs officer at Northwest Vista College and also worked at a Kentucky community college.
He earned his doctorate of education in educational leadership at Texas A&M University - Corpus Christi, Texas; a master’s degree in organizational communication and a bachelor’s degree in Public Relations from Western Kentucky University in Bowling Green, Ky.