Atlanta — February 21, 2002

Four finalists for president of Gordon College were announced today by the Board of Regents and University System of Georgia Chancellor Thomas C. Meredith.

“We are very pleased with the outcome of this search,” the chancellor said. “It drew a large number of applicants, all of whom had strong academic and administrative backgrounds. Any one of these finalists could do a fine job of strengthening the strong academic environment that already exists at the institution.”

The finalists, in alphabetical order, are as follows:

• Dr. James P. Bruns, vice president of academic and student affairs at Pellissippi State Technical Community College, in Knoxville, Tenn. Bruns has served in his current role since 1996. During his tenure at Pellissippi State, Bruns has established distance-education degrees and revamped the registration process and student advising. Prior to joining his current institution, he previously served as vice president for academic affairs at Carroll Community College, in Westminster, Md., from 1993 to 1996. He was the college’s director of instruction for three years prior to that. From 1979 to 1990, Bruns served as chair of the Division of Social Science at Dundalk Community College, in Baltimore, Md. He taught geography and American history at Dundalk throughout that period, and, for three years (1981-84) also served as director of business and industrial relations at the college. Bruns holds a B.S. in education and an M.A. in teaching from Miami University, in Ohio, and an Ed.D., from Ball State University. He also earned a certificate in management and leadership education at Harvard University. Bruns is a member of the board of directors of the National Alliance of Community Colleges and also a member of the Chancellor’s Committee for an Educated Tennessee.

• Dr. Patricia C. Donohue, vice chancellor for education at St. Louis Community College, in St. Louis, Mo. Donohue has served in her current post since 1993 and served as acting president of the college’s Florissant Valley campus during 1998. She has over 25 years of experience in a variety of college and university positions, seven of them at Harrisburg Area Community College (HACC), in Harrisburg, Pa. She served as HACC’s assistant dean for academic affairs - mathematics, engineering and technology - from 1986 to 1989 and dean of the School of Business, Engineering and Technology from 1989 to 1993. During her last year at this institution, she served as interim dean of the Lebanon, Pa., campus and then vice president for external affairs and community development. From 1984 to 1986, Donohue was director of institutional research and planning at Lakeland Community College, in Kirtland, Ohio. Before that, she spent 10 years at the University of Missouri-Kansas City, first as a lecturer and research assistant (1974-79), then as coordinator of affirmative action (1979-81). She also served as an institutional research associate (1981-84), and finally as acting director of academic personnel and affirmative action (1984). Donohue also taught high-school mathematics from 1966 to 1971. She holds an A.B. in mathematics from Duke University and also earned a master of arts in mathematics education and a Ph.D. in curriculum and instruction, both from the University of Missouri-Kansas City.

• Dr. Nat Frazer, professor and chair of the Department of Wildlife Ecology and Conservation at the University of Florida in Gainesville, Fla. He has held his current position since 1999. Frazer, a native Georgian, was previously on the faculty of the University of Georgia, where he was associate director and associate research scientist for the U.S. Department of Energy’s Savannah River Ecology Laboratory from 1993 to 1998. Before that, he spent eight years at Mercer University, first as an assistant professor of biology (1985-91) and then as an associate professor and chair of the Department of Biology (1991-93). Frazer spent two years (1983-85) as a post-doctoral research fellow at the Marine Policy and Oceanographic Institute at Woods Hole, Mass. Prior to that, he was a research and teaching assistant at the University of Georgia from 1978 to 1983. >From 1973 to 1977, Frazer was a member of the faculty of Southern Illinois University, first as a staff-development specialist (1973-74) and then as an instructor of basic medical education and manager of educational resources for the School of Medicine (1974-77). Frazer earned a B.A. in history at the University of Georgia, an M.A. in history and public affairs from the University of Illinois at Springfield, and a Ph.D. in ecology from the University of Georgia.

• Dr. Lawrence V. Weill, dean of academic affairs at Hopkinsville Community College, in Hopkinsville, Ky. Weill joined the college’s humanities faculty as an associate professor and director of the Learning Center in 1993, a position he held through 1998, when he was named a full professor. He received his current appointment as dean of academic affairs in July 2000. Before his arrival at Hopkinsville Community College, Weill was a member of the faculty of Lexington Community College, in Lexington, Ky., from 1984 to 1992. For the last three of those years, he served as chair of LCC’s Division of Humanities. Weill also served as a writing specialist in the International Student Program and a coordinator and composition instructor at Kentucky Wesleyan College, in Owensboro, Ky., from 1980 to 1984. Weill began his academic career as a coordinator in the Arts Department and an instructor of English at Midway College, in Midway, Ky. He holds a B.S. in mathematics from Brescia College, in Owensboro, Ky., a M.A. in humanities from the University of Evansville, in Evansville, Ind., and a Ph.D. in higher education from the University of Kentucky.

The Board of Regents is expected to act on the Gordon College presidential appointment during its March 13 meeting.

« News Releases