Search Narrowed to Three Finalists for UAS Ketchikan Director

Three finalists have been chosen by a UAS Ketchikan search committee for a new campus director.

Ketchikan, Alaska

Date of Press Release: December 19, 2012

Three finalists have been chosen by a UAS Ketchikan search committee for a new campus director.  They are former Western Dakota Technical Institute Vice President for Academic Affairs Cathy Anderson, Ph.D., former Berkeley City College President John F. Garmon, Ph.D., and former Pima Medical Institute Director Voytek (Wojtek) Panas, D.Min.

Gail Klein, Ketchikan Campus Student Services Manager, chairs the search committee which includes faculty, staff and community members. According to Klein, “we’re looking for a Director who has strong leadership skills, is focused on student success, and is excited about living and working in Ketchikan and Southeast Alaska.” The committee has been reviewing applications throughout the fall. The finalists have been invited to come to Ketchikan to meet members of the campus and business communities. More information will follow with the details of the scheduled visits which will include multiple days in Ketchikan and a day in Juneau with the UAS Chancellor and Provost.

In her application, Dr. Anderson writes, “Collaborating with the faculty, the college community, and educational and business partners to sustain and further the UAS Ketchikan Campus reach to students would be an exciting opportunity that matches my professional interests.”

Western Dakota Technical Institute is an institution of higher education that provides Associates of Applied Science in fields such as diesel, welding, nursing, medical assisting, pharmacy tech, surgical technician and automotive technology. WDTI is one of four technical institutes in the State of South Dakota, which operates under the governance of the South Dakota Board of Education and the Rapid City Area School District.

Dr. John Garmon writes, “My mission is to provide a learning centered higher education experience for students, to help them learn how to become effective, lifelong learners. Additionally, my goal as an administrative leader is to expand and strengthen the college’s resources. I have more than twenty years of college teaching to support my administrative experience.”

Garmon is currently employed as the Editor, Elected Board Member, and Education Consultant for Native West Press in Prescott, AZ.  From 2008-09, he served as Deputy Vice Chancellor of Academic Affairs, for Dhofar University in the Sultanate of Oman.

Garmon is also a published poet with many national publications to his credit, including Southern Poetry Review, Southern Humanities Review, Ploughshares, Midwest Quarterly Review, New Mexico Humanities Review, and The Prairie Schooner.

Dr. Panas writes, “Given my business and academic experience, combined with my ability to multitask and work well under pressure, I believe that I can make a significant contribution to University of Alaska Ketchikan as the Campus Director.”

As a Campus Director at Pima Medical Institute (PMI), in Albuquerque, NM, Panas managed
faculty and administrative staff and a campus of 800 students in allied health and nursing degree programs. The students at Pima were from diverse academic, cultural, and ethnic backgrounds, and often disadvantaged demographics.

Prior UAS Ketchikan Director Anthony Mansueto resigned in June. The position is open until filled.