Portland Community College | Portland, Oregon

New Home on the Range

Photos and story by James Hill

It only took a couple of minutes but Katherine Persson was certain she found her new home.

Last October as she drove onto the Rock Creek Campus for her first interview she looked around at the open acres, the farmland, the buildings and the people and she said to herself, “This is it.”

A Texas native who spent nearly 30 years outside Houston in the North Harris Montgomery Community College District, Persson had decided it was time to move on. She saw the opening for the presidency at Rock Creek and almost immediately colleagues encouraged her to apply.

“I was ready for a big, big change and I was ready for a new adventure,” said Persson, who left the district as vice president of educational programs and services at Kingwood College. “Besides being located in one of the most beautiful areas of the country, both Rock Creek and the district have an excellent reputation. In fact, what attracted me most to the position is the challenge and opportunity to work in a progressive multi-campus system.”

She is now president of the Beaverton campus that serves 8,200 students a quarter. When she started the job in January she vowed to meet with every single faculty and staff member – all 400 of them – and talk about their jobs and the campus in general. So far she’s sat down face-to-face with about 30 people.

“I’m trying to get a good read on the campus and learn about its strengths and challenges,” she said, adding that she sees potential for growth in professional and technical programs such as landscape design, the construction trades, veterinary technology and environmental science.

Persson is the daughter of two teachers – her mother taught public school and he father was a college professor. She earned a doctorate in educational administration from the University of Texas and began her own teaching career as an adjunct professor in biology.

After teaching biology for nearly a decade, she shifted her focus to administrative duties on the advice of a former campus president. During her time in the district, she served as an associate dean and vice president.

In addition to her professional work, she was an elected school board member for the Splendora Independent School District, resigning her seat in January after 16 years of service. She also was active on the Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors for Montgomery County and the Leadership North Houston Board of Directors.

Her husband, a high school government and economics teacher, will join her in Beaverton once the academic year ends. Her three adult children remain in Texas but there are plenty of trips planned for visits to the Pacific Northwest.