League Reaffirmation - Johnson County Community College
League Reaffirmation - Johnson County Community College
League Reaffirmation - Johnson County Community College
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Dear <strong>League</strong> Board Members,<br />
I began life in the community college world<br />
as a faculty member at a small rural school in<br />
Iowa. My first contact with the <strong>League</strong><br />
for Innovation came in the form of <strong>League</strong><br />
publications, especially the Learning<br />
Abstracts, which I always eagerly read.<br />
The advice shared by other community<br />
college teachers contained in these<br />
Abstracts was dynamic and exciting,<br />
and I always tried to incorporate these<br />
teaching strategies in my classes whenever<br />
possible. Later when I became a dean at the<br />
college, I received the <strong>League</strong>’s Leadership Abstracts with just as much<br />
anticipation. One of my highlights as an administrator there occurred<br />
when the faculty member hired to replace me as an instructor (and he<br />
was also a former student) published a particularly effective classroom<br />
practice of his as a Learning Abstract. Needless to say, I proudly touted<br />
this accomplishment throughout the campus for quite some time.<br />
It was during these days in Iowa as a dean that I began to learn about<br />
<strong>Johnson</strong> <strong>County</strong> <strong>Community</strong> <strong>College</strong>. Very soon in my research, I became<br />
so impressed with the school that I held it in my esteem as one of the best<br />
community colleges in the country, very possibly the best. A visit to the<br />
campus confirmed in my mind <strong>Johnson</strong> <strong>County</strong> <strong>Community</strong> <strong>College</strong>’s<br />
position as a board member for the prestigious <strong>League</strong> for Innovation.<br />
I was in my fifth year as academic vice president at a community<br />
college in Illinois when I learned that the executive vice president for<br />
academic affairs position at JCCC was being advertised. With great<br />
enthusiasm I applied for the post and thereafter was named to it.<br />
I was beyond elation to have attained such an exceptional job at<br />
such a remarkable institution. And when President Carlsen asked me<br />
to consider being JCCC’s representative to the <strong>League</strong> for Innovation<br />
board, I could not accept quickly enough. I had come far from<br />
reading those Learning Abstracts in the cornfields of Iowa.<br />
I think you will find documented in this report before you <strong>Johnson</strong><br />
<strong>County</strong> <strong>Community</strong> <strong>College</strong>’s full commitment to the <strong>League</strong> for<br />
Innovation. I, too, am dedicated to the <strong>League</strong> and its activities.<br />
When recently asked by <strong>League</strong> staff if I could engineer JCCC’s<br />
involvement in a <strong>League</strong> project, I responded, “I’d run through hell<br />
in a gasoline suit for the <strong>League</strong>!” An exaggeration? Well, maybe.<br />
The leadership that <strong>Johnson</strong> <strong>County</strong> <strong>Community</strong> <strong>College</strong> and the<br />
<strong>League</strong> for Innovation provide for twoyear schools on this continent<br />
and throughout the world is sterling. I thank both institutions for giving<br />
me the opportunity to participate in initiatives that in the future will<br />
improve the course of higher education.<br />
Sincerely,<br />
Dana Grove<br />
Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs<br />
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