craigdailypress.com

For John Boyd, the newly minted president of a local community college, it was not only vital that a balance exists between himself and the university he was considering -- it was mandatory.

Boyd, 49, thinks he found the right mix at Colorado Northwestern Community College, which has campuses in Craig and Rangely.

"I really liked the area," said Boyd, who took over as president March 13. "When I looked at the college, I thought it was a good fit for them and me.

"I'm planning to be here for a long time. I'll stay as long as I feel I'm useful."

The attraction of CNCC, Boyd said, lies with a community college that, despite waning enrollment in recent years, has the potential for great things. The area's rich opportunities for hunting and fishing also lured Boyd, an avid outdoorsman, from his former post as interim provost of the Grand Strand Campus at the Horry Georgetown Technical College in South Carolina.

He hasn't had much of a chance to take advantage of the outdoors yet, though.

"I've driven through the snow," he said. "That's about it.

"Work comes first. There's a lot to do here -- build the enrollment and relationships out in the community. I'm going to hit that quite a bit."

Priorities for the foreseeable future include bolstering enrollment, which Boyd said he plans to do by establishing new programs that will benefit the local economies.

"We're going to focus on programs that are unique as well as build new programs that are good for the area," he said, citing new courses that would train future employees of the petroleum and power plant trades. "You've got growing industries, and I think that we need to help provide a quality work force for them."

Boyd hopes to bring four to six new course offerings to CNCC. The programs will be designed to draw national interest from college-bound students, which, in turn, should help improve declining enrollment.

Allowing enrollment to continue to freefall, he said, would be a death nail to the school.

"It impacts your ability to offer courses, to develop new programs," Boyd said. "It's a snowball effect that we have to change."

During a welcome reception last week, statewide community college leaders praised Boyd for an "illustrious career" in higher education and also for past accomplishments in leadership and business.

His resume supports those assertions.

Boyd, originally from Wisconsin, completed his undergraduate work at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville, where he received a bachelor of science in criminal justice. He earned a master's degree in criminal administration from Oklahoma City University and has completed course work for a doctorate in educational leadership at Clemson University.

He is a military veteran, serving 12 years in the U.S. Army. Half his military career was spent teaching leadership to officers. He is a retired major in the inactive reserves.

Boyd, and his wife, Betty, live in Rangely. They arrived in Colorado on March 11. They have a son, 25-year-old Jason, who lives in South Carolina.

Although he's still getting acquainted with the area, Boyd said residents can count on CNCC as an important cog in the community.

"An integral part of the economic development in this area," he said. "We're going to be a good community partner across the board."

Joshua Roberts can be reached at 824-7031, ext. 210, or jroberts@craigdailypress.com.