DAYTONA BEACH, FL (May 25, 2011) - Daytona State College’s Presidential Search Advisory Committee has narrowed its pool of candidates from nine to four, following two days of interviews earlier this week.
The finalists selected by the 22-member committee in, alphabetical order, are: Roslyn Artis, executive vice president of Mountain State University (W.Va.); Drew Bennett, chancellor, Missouri State University-West Plains; Carol Eaton, president of Frederick Community College (Md.) and Irby "Skip" Sullivan, president, West Georgia Technical College.
Selection Committee Chairman T. K. Wetherell said the finalist candidates most closely fit the leadership needs of the college and clearly stood out among search committee members.
The search committee, its charge now complete, was assisted by Dr. Robert Parilla, a consultant with Academic Search, a nationally known firm with expertise in recruiting senior-level higher education administrators.
The search committee, its charge now complete, was assisted by Dr. Robert Parilla, a consultant with Academic Search, a nationally known firm with expertise in recruiting senior-level higher education administrators.
For more information, please call (386) 506-4408, or email mercerl@daytonastate.edu.
Presidential candidate finalist bios
Roslyn C. Artis, J.D., Ed.D. - Dr. Artis is an attorney who practiced law from 1995 to 2003 before embarking on a career in academia. As senior academic officer for Distance Education at Mountain State University, she was responsible for the university's online and independent study programs as well as MSU's branch campuses. She also has served as vice president of Advancement and president of the Mountain State University Foundation. She is now executive vice president and chief academic officer responsible for oversight of all academic deans, faculty, courses and programs for all Mountain State University locations. Dr. Artis earned a B.A. in Political Science (magna cum laude) from West Virginia State University; a J.D. from West Virginia University School of Law and; an Ed.D. in Higher Education Leadership and Policy from Vanderbilt University, where she was valedictorian of her class.
Drew Bennett, Ph.D - Dr. Bennett has been chancellor of Missouri State University – West Plains since 2007. He received his B.A. in History from Tulane University, his M.S. in Human Relations from Golden Gate University, his M.S. in National Security Strategy from the National War College, and his Ph.D. in Adult and Extension Education from Texas A&M University. Commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Marine Corps, he rose to the rank of colonel, commanding infantry units at every level from platoon to regiment and working on Service, Joint (multi-service), and Combined (US and allied) Staffs. Under Dr. Bennett’s leadership, Missouri State University-West Plains was selected for two years in a row as “A Great College To Work For” by the Chronicle of Higher Education, and was recently ranked among the top 120 two-year colleges in the United States by the Aspen Institute.
Carol Eaton, Ph.D. - Dr. Eaton is the president of the Frederick Community College in Frederick, Md. Before that, she was vice chancellor of community colleges at the State Universities of New York (SUNY). During her tenure at SUNY, Dr. Eaton was responsible for completing the SUNY Community College Strategic Plan, conducting a SUNY-wide Community College Nursing Survey, fostering new relations with SUNY's community colleges and the State Department of Labor for workforce development, and instrumental on SUNY's Capital Funding Taskforce. Prior to her position as vice chancellor, Dr. Eaton was president of Clinton Community College in Plattsburgh, NY. She also has experience teaching mathematics. Her Ph.D., M.S. and B.S. are from SUNY Albany and she also holds an A.A.S. degree from SUNY Cobleskill.
Irby Sullivan, Ed.D. – Dr. Sullivan has been president of West Georgia Technical College since 2006. Previously, he was chief academic officer at Miller College in Michigan and provost at Glenville State College in West Virginia. He also was dean and chief academic officer of Miller College, located on the Battle Creek campus of Kellogg Community College, Michigan, where his responsibilities also included instructional programming, economic and workforce development, student services and fundraising. He also worked in the transportation industry for 17 years and has taught psychology at the Heart of Georgia Technical College in Dublin, where he served as chair for Academic and Developmental Studies and was the college's teacher of the year in 1999. He has an Ed.D. from University of Georgia, an M.S. from Fort Valley State, and a B.A. fromTennessee Temple University.