Portland Community College | Portland, Oregon

PCC president re-named to Higher Ed Board

Photos and story by James Hill

Portland Community College President Preston Pulliams has been re-appointed by Gov. Ted Kulongoski to the Oregon State Board of Higher Education. Pulliams was first appointed last year by the governor.

The Board is the statutory governing board of the seven-campus Oregon University System and is composed of 11 members appointed by the governor and confirmed by the Oregon State Senate.

“I am honored and excited to serve another term on the state board,” Pulliams said. “We will continue our hard work of ensuring that all citizens of Oregon are informed about current issues and events affecting the higher education system. It’s important to keep access to education affordable and available to anyone in Oregon who wants it and I’m pleased to be a part of this effort.”

Pulliams, who lives in Aloha, Ore., took over as PCC’s fifth president in 2004. Some of his accomplishments include:

· Steered PCC to the National Equity Award from the Association of Community College Trustees, which honored the college for its efforts to hire a diverse workforce and to ensure opportunities for access to education for students of color and women.

· Testified to the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging in Washington, D.C., about the variety of initiatives PCC has developed to serve the “Age Boom,” and the impending workforce shortage.

· He met with Speaker of the U.S. House Nancy Pelosi about medical technology used in operating and emergency rooms and how to safely store medical information.

· Convened a taskforce of faculty and students to guide the college’s efforts in curbing greenhouse gas emissions, signing the College & University Presidents Climate Commitment.

· Led PCC into co-enrollment agreements with three local universities as well as five state community colleges to improve student access to undergraduate education.

· Under his watch, the PCC Foundation raised more than $1.3 million in 2006-07 for student scholarships – a record for the organization – and growing the endowment to $2.56 million.

· Pulliams is an active trustee of the American Association of Community College Trustee’s Advisory Committee of Presidents; American Association of Community College’s Global Education Commission; American Council on Education’s Commission on Effective Leadership; Community College Research Council; Workforce Investment Board; OMSI; and the World Affairs Council, to name a few.

Pulliams came to Portland Community College after serving as vice-chancellor for Community Colleges for the State University of New York (SUNY) where he coordinated and directed the activities of the 30 community colleges in the SUNY system. Before joining the SUNY administration, Pulliams served as president of Orange County Community College in Middletown, New York from 1997 to 2003. From 1993 to 1997 he was president of the Highland Lakes Campus of the Oakland Community College District in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. He served as vice-president for student affairs at the Community College of Philadelphia from 1985 to 1993, and he also served as dean of student services and counselor at Muskegon Community College from 1972 to 1984.

In addition to his experience in community college administration, Pulliams has taught at the graduate and undergraduate level, and for several years taught civics, psychology and geography at a junior high school in Michigan. He has done extensive research and writing on student achievement, minority student success, counseling at the community college level and on establishing effective working relationships between boards and college presidents.

Pulliams is a community college graduate, earning his associate’s degree in science from Muskegon Community College. He also received a bachelor’s degree in social science from Michigan State University, a master’s degree in counseling and personnel from Western Michigan University and doctorate in educational administration from the University of Michigan.