Former Community College President to Join Curriculum Development Team for Erie Community College Study
ERIE (December 15, 2016) – Dr. Roy A. Church, former President of Lorain County Community College, will join the working group charged with developing the curriculum for a proposed Erie Community College. Dr. Church retired earlier this year after serving as President of Lorain County Community College since 1987.
“Dr. Church is a noted visionary among Community College presidents and we are very fortunate he has agreed to join Erie’s community college effort,” said Ronald A. DiNicola, Empower Erie Chairperson.
“Dr. Church has a deep understanding of how a community college works best in the community it serves and understands how it can become a transformative influence in the region. During his time at Lorain County Community College he effectively partnered with community and business leaders to ensure quality programs were developed, based on market research and job forecasts, to prepare students to succeed.
Church is highly regarded for his leadership in creating innovative models to fulfill the four cornerstones of the comprehensive community college mission: education, economic, community and cultural development. While at Lorain County Community College, Dr. Church maintained a firm commitment to ensuring quality education at an affordable cost for students and their families and created programs to suit the community’s changing needs.
"When I arrived in Lorain County nearly 30 years ago, I was full of hope and aspiration for the impact the college could have on that community," said Church. "I was attracted to the area because I could see the college's potential. Today, I find myself similarly excited as I join the Empower Erie team. From all I learned in Lorain, I can see that Erie is ready for the same sort of transformation.”
Lorain County Community College tuition ranks second lowest in the state of Ohio. Church partnered with K-12 districts to pioneer blended college pathways for high school students, and he ensured the campus served as a resource for the entire community. In May 2015, the Brookings Institute ranked Lorain County Community among the highest among all Ohio community colleges in value added based on earnings for graduates.
“As Lorain Community College President, Dr. Church clearly saw the connection between a higher education and good jobs,” said DiNicola. “He recognized the need in the community to not only prepare talent with strong skills, but to also help grow companies that create good‐paying jobs.”
Church is credited with leading the development of the most robust portfolio for supporting innovation and entrepreneurship of any community college in the country. He created one of the most robust models for dual enrollment opportunities in the state, exceeding national and state averages for high school students graduating with college credit. (Nationally: 7.8%, Ohio: 5%; Lorain County 20%)
“Since the day I arrived from Florida on the first day of the job, I’ve always maintained that Community is our middle name very intentionally,” said Dr. Church. “A Community College is intended to be an institution that has its roots in the community, and because it grows out of the community, it should have a better sense of what the needs are in the community.”
Church was also a leader in designing a statewide system for ensuring that dual enrollment was an option for more students, using the model developed and piloted in Lorain County. He advocated strongly to ensure the financial model took into consideration the needs and abilities of all partners from students and parents, to school districts to institutions of higher education.
Prior to coming to Lorain County, Church held progressively expanding leadership roles at Broward Community College in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, and St. Petersburg Community College in the Tampa Bay area. While in Florida, he earned a Master’s Degree in Education and a Doctorate in Higher Education Administration from Florida Atlantic University. He earned a Bachelor’s of Science Degree in his home state of New York from SUNY, Cortland in 1968.
Church serves as Co-Chair of the Innovation Fund of America, Chair of the Ohio Department of Higher Education (formerly Ohio Board of Regents) Articulation and Transfer Advisory Council, among his many statewide appointments. Nationally, he serves on the U.S. Department of Commerce National Advisory Board, Manufacturing Extension Partnership, National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST); National Education Council for Manufacturing Institute; Strategic Horizon Network, Center for Community College Development, University of Michigan..
View Original Article »