Is 6 months enough time to find new NMC president?

With only six months left until the end of the Northern Marianas College president’s contract, the Board of Regents has yet to begin its search for a replacement.

In November, NMC president Dr. Sharon Y. Hart stated that she has been collaborating with the Board of Regents to “ensure the smooth transition and stability of leadership” at the college after entering an agreement with the board to extend her employment contract until June 2016.

Hart, who was hired in 2011, noted that she plans to focus on her family and return to the United States.

At the same time, according to the Portland Press Herald, she is one of the finalists for the presidency of the University of Maine at Fort Kent. Coinciding with her leave early this month, she is one of four finalists who visited the campus during the first two weeks of December.

The Herald stated that after the campus visits, the search committee will finalize its work and send its findings and recommendation to the chancellor who will make a recommendation in January so the new president can begin work early next year.

In previous years before Hart’s presidency, the board struggled with finding a qualified candidate, trailing along a controversial presidency with Dr. Carmen Fernandez.

The Board of Regents expressed that under Hart’s leadership, the college has moved from show-cause status under the WASC Senior College and University Commission to accreditation reaffirmation with no reports or visits required.

Other accomplishments cited under Hart’s leadership include the college’s continued increase in student enrollment, ensuring that the college’s bachelor in education program continues to receive federal financial aid, successful audits of the college, and the CNMI joining the Western Interstate Commission of Higher Education.

Hart noted her commitment to meeting the goals outlined in NMC’s five-year strategic plan, which focuses on workforce development efforts, college completion, student success and support, and resource development.

However, with the end fast approaching for Hart to move on to greener pastures, the board has not put a plan in place for finding her replacement.

Although the board’s committee on personnel has yet to decide on the critical issue, in previous years they gave 100-percent recruitment and hiring authority to the Association of Community College Trustees or ACCT, which provides leadership services and executive search support to successfully identify community college leaders. That, however, has ruled out a local search for a possible candidate.