Clark College Board of Trustees names new Interim President

For Immediate Release
June 25, 2019

For additional information (news media inquiries only):
Kelly Love, Communications & Marketing
T: 360-992-2921 E: klove@clark.edu

Board of Trustees names Dr. Sandra A. Fowler-Hill

VANCOUVER, Wash. — Clark College Board of Trustees voted unanimously tonight to offer the interim college presidency to Dr. Sandra A. Fowler-Hill. 

She has accepted, pending completion of contract negotiations.  The decision was made at a special board meeting Tuesday June 25 following a two-month process led by the Board of Trustees with support from a national search firm. 

The successful candidate was selected after a series of interviews with faculty, staff, students, and trustees, as well as a collegewide open forum. “We received many comments through the process, which were all taken into consideration as we made our deliberations,” said Trustee Paul Speer. “We had three excellent candidates and we think Dr. Fowler-Hill will be a tremendous asset to our college during this year of transition.”

Dr. Sandra A. Fowler-Hill is an experienced leader in higher education, having served as President of Portland Community College’s Rock Creek Campus from 2014 to 2018. She has also served as Vice President of Instruction at Everett Community College and Dean for Student Learning at Cascadia Community College. She began her career at Olympic College, where she worked for 19 years, beginning as program manager of Women’s Programs, then moving into a tenured faculty position before being named to the position of Dean for Social Science and Humanities. Since retiring from PCC Rock Creek, she has served as a consultant for the Association of Community College Trustees. She earned her bachelor’s degree in Applied Behavioral Science from George Williams College in Downers Grove, Illinois; her master’s degree in Human Development Counseling from the University of Illinois at Springfield; and her doctorate degree in Community College Leadership from Oregon State University.

Retiring President Bob Knight will meet with the incoming President to help with the transition, both before and after his planned retirement date of July 15, 2019.

“We are grateful to Bob Knight for his leadership. This marks a major milestone in Clark’s history. By appointing an interim president for the year, the college and the community will have ample time to recruit, screen, interview and interact with candidates for the permanent position,” said Speer. “We want this to be a robust, inclusive and transparent process.”

To read more about the presidential search process and next steps, visit www.clark.edu/presidential-search.

Photos and bio available upon request. 

About Clark College

Located in Vancouver’s Central Park and serving up to 12,000 students per quarter, Clark College is Southwest Washington’s largest public institution of higher education. The college currently offers classes at two satellite locations: one on the Washington State University Vancouver campus and one in the Columbia Tech Center in East Vancouver. Additionally, its Economic & Community Development program is housed in the Columbia Bank building in downtown Vancouver.