LYNN — North Shore Community College announced on Thursday the five finalists for the school’s next president.
The finalists were chosen by a Presidential Search Committee and will meet the college community. The candidates will then be considered by the NSCC Board of Trustees.
The five finalists are Joel Frater, the former executive dean of Monroe Community College in New York; William Heineman, the provost at Northern Essex Community College in Haverhill; Gloria Lopez, the vice president for student affairs at Westfield State University; Matthew Reed, the vice president for learning at Brookdale Community College in New Jersey; and Dione Somerville, the executive vice president at Hawkeye Community College in Iowa.
All five candidates will partake in a virtual campus visit during the week of March 29 to April 2, followed by open forums for faculty, staff, the NSCC Board of Trustees and representatives from the Massachusetts Board of Higher Education. Candidates will be on campus virtually for two days each, according to NSCC spokeswoman Linda Brantley.
After the candidates’ visits, the Board of Trustees is scheduled to vote to recommend the appointment of the college’s next president on April 6 at 5 p.m. during an open Zoom session.
“Let me also take this opportunity to acknowledge and thank Dr. Nate Bryant as he continues his term as interim president of NSCC,” said Board of Trustees Chair Dr. J.D. LaRock. “Nate has provided dedicated, steady, and compassionate leadership during one of the most challenging years ever for higher education.
“That is an immense achievement, and the board and I look forward to his continued leadership of our college until the next president takes office.”
She expressed deep appreciation and respect for Bryant on behalf of the entire NSCC community, praising him for his accomplishments and work ethic.
Bryant was originally prohibited from applying for the permanent position, but more than 125 NSCC faculty and staff members signed a letter to the commissioner of higher education asking for that policy to be changed. The policy was changed, but Brantley said that whether or not Bryant applied for the position is confidential information that she could not comment on.
