Worcester Business Journal

10 Worcester Business Journal | April 17, 2017 | wbjournal.com New era at MWCC Third Mount Wachusett president in 54 years looking to grow partnerships with area businesses and support workforce training "If we're actually doing our jobs and meeting the needs of the community, then there's that opportunity to be the source for those businesses and those leaders to utilize," Vander Hooven said. Vander Hooven, 45, took over as president of Mount Wachusett Community College in Gardner last month, the third person in the school's 54-year history to hold the job. He succeeded Daniel Asquino, who was president of the college for nearly 30 years. Vander Hooven said he expects to spend his first few months on the job assessing where the college is now and where he wants it to be – includ- ing specifics on its relationship to the business community. "Continuing to build and establish partnerships and relationships with business and industry is a really big emphasis point for me," he said. Creating opportunities For more than 20 years, Vander Hooven has built his career around increasing opportunities for students of all ages and backgrounds. He got his start on that path after a few years of secondary teaching and administrative work, when he found himself as the youngest person in the room in a non- traditional classroom. Since then, he has dedicated his career to finding Community colleges need to provide workforce By the end of the year, both Central Massachusetts community colleges will have new presidents. James Vander Hooven took over at Mount Wachusett Community College in March, and the board of trustees at Quinsigamond Community College picked Luis Pedraja to take over for Gail Carberry, who is retiring at the end of the school year. When polled, WBJ readers said community colleges need to focus on aligning their educations with what area businesses need. F L A S H P O L L What is the most important thing community colleges can do for companies in their area? Offer curricula that aligns with industry's workforce needs 52% Have certificate programs where companies can send their employees for additional training Provide educational opportunities to people of all ages and backgrounds to create a bigger talent pool 34% 0% COMMENTS: "Create an affordable place to improve one's education." "Skilled labor is our biggest challenge. We need trained and qualified diesel technicians to sustain our future business model." "It is important to remember that transfer agreements with the four-year institutions are a must." Supply equipment and assistance for companies to do research 14% innovations to improve lives of a diverse set of students and families. "When you see what a lot of our students need to overcome or the obstacles they have in front of them on the way to achieving their goals, and then when you see them actually succeed and get their diploma, or transfer out for a bachelor's degree, or they get the job because they just got the certificate they needed, there isn't anything at all like that," he said. Vander Hooven came to Mount Wachusett from Landmark College in Putney, Vt., where he was vice presi- dent for enrollment management. Before that, he was president of Tohono O'odham Community College on the Tohono O'odham reservation in Arizona, where he oversaw a $9-mil- lion construction of a new main cam- pus, represented the Tribal Colleges on Capitol Hill in annual presentations, and strengthened STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) programs on campus. Helping the North Central economy Mount Wachusett is already an asset to economic development in North Worcester County. The college works closely with indus- try to figure out what programs it needs to add in order to meet the area's workforce needs. In the past year, the college added a program in health information man- agement and a certificate in substance abuse counseling. One particular industry focus is manufacturing. The college's campus in Devens has more than $1.2 million in advanced manufacturing equipment, where training is able to be translated directly into business needs. Companies like drugmaker Bristol- Meyers Squibb in Devens send their employees to job training programs created specifically for them. The North Central region of Massachusetts has a high concentration of manufacturers, said Roy Nascimento, president and CEO of the North Central BY LAURA FINALDI Worcester Business Journal Staff Writer W hen the economy takes a hit, like it did in 2008, community college enrollment goes up. Conversely, when the economy improves, people return to the workforce and enrollment at community colleges drops. While that may be true for traditional associate's degree pro- grams, James Vander Hooven said community colleges have the opportunity to be a resource for businesses in both good and bad times. James Vander Hooven took over as Mount Wachusett Community College president in March after serving as vice president for enrollment management at Landmark College. James Vander Hooven Residence: Keene, NH Degrees: Ed.D. higher education leadership, University of Maine; M.A. American Studies, University of Wyoming; B.A. English, The Ohio State University. Most recent employer: Landmark College in Putney, Vt.

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