It is reasonable to assume that the nationally recognized executive search firm RH Perry & Associates is more than capable of executing a successful search to identify a permanent president for North Shore Community College. And we’re sure the local search committee will work thoughtfully and tirelessly to hire the best person for the job.
You can make a cogent argument that anyone who has a role in finding the next president of NSCC has an easy job. All they need to do is head to Room 345 in the Frederick E. Berry Building on the Danvers campus. There, in the office of the president, they will find the best candidate for the job of president.
Dr. Nate Bryant took over as interim president of NSCC on July 6. In less than three months, he has established himself as exactly the leader that the college needs at this point in time.
We are confident that the combination of Dr. Bryant’s previous experience – more than 30 years at Salem State University, working his way up from admissions counselor to vice president and chief of staff to President John Keenan – and his performance at NSCC would serve him well in any search process.
There is one glitch, however. It is the policy of the Mass. Department of Higher Education to not consider interim presidents for the permanent position, “except in rare and extraordinary circumstances.”
When that word got out, the NSCC faculty acted quickly and decisively. In August, 126 professors, administrators and other staff signed a letter to Commissioner of Higher Education Dr. Carlos Santiago, imploring him to allow Dr. Bryant to be considered for the permanent position, while expressing their high praise for the job he has done thus far.
“… there is an enormous feeling of relief among the NSCC faculty that we could not possibly have a better person at the helm than Dr. Bryant. He is a perfect fit and the ideal person to lead NSCC,” they wrote. It is telling that they came to that conclusion after working with Dr. Bryant for only a month.
The letter makes it clear that they are not asking for Dr. Bryant be “handed the position. We only ask that the DHE (Department of Higher Education) allows him to apply and to treat his application as they would any other candidate.”
The NSCC staff make a compelling case that the set of circumstances under which Dr. Bryant was hired – global pandemic, vote of no confidence in the previous president and declining enrollment – more than qualify as “rare and extraordinary.” We wholeheartedly agree.
From continuing to guide NSCC through the myriad of challenges presented by the pandemic, to collaborating with other colleges on an initiative to offer credit for work experience, Dr. Bryant has displayed the qualities that any organization would want in its leader. He is intelligent, thoughtful, compassionate and driven.
Dr. Bryant came to the North Shore from Connecticut as a Salem State student-athlete 35 years ago and never left. He has experienced public education from all sides: as a student, parent, administrator and Salem School Committee member. As Salem Mayor Kim Driscoll said when he was named to the interim position at NSCC, “He sees the value of public higher education and how it has the power to change lives.”
With NSCC having a major presence in Lynn, it is noteworthy that the college and Lynn Public Schools, under the direction of Superintendent Dr. Patrick Tutwiler, have as their leaders individuals who not only have distinguished themselves as eminently capable executives, but are also reflective of the diverse constituencies and communities they represent. The two are a perfect fit for this city at this moment in time.
In the letter to Dr. Santiago, the NSCC faculty note that it would be “a shame if the best possible candidate is indeed Dr. Bryant, and he is excluded from even applying. We sincerely hope you will grant him that opportunity.”
For the sake of everyone who studies and works at the college, we do as well.
