BCC President Praised, Contract Extended in Performance Review

Four-year degrees for the first time in College history, among the highest graduation rates in Florida and in the nation, and no tuition hikes for students.

Those were some of the accomplishments that Brevard Community College’s Board of Trustees cited Monday in praising the first-year performance of President Dr. Jim Richey, and rewarding him by extending his contract through 2018.

“Dr. Richey has demonstrated strong, results-driven leadership that is turning BCC into much more than it has been in the past,” said Trustee Chair, Alan Landman.

“He has done an exceptional job that is continuing to improve educational opportunities for students and is helping Brevard County’s economy grow. We’re very fortunate to have him at the helm.”

Richey gained the post in February 2012 after serving as Interim President following the retirement of the College’s previous chief executive, Dr. Jim Drake.

He was given a three-year contract at the time that was to expire in 2015

Trustees unanimously voted to extend the contract to 2018, saying Richey’s business-orientated approach has put the College on a strong academic and fiscal course for the future.

Richey thanked trustees for their confidence, saying “It’s my great honor to serve the College and our students, and provide them with the programs they need to meet the demands of today’s economy and improve their lives.”

He went on to credit BCC’s faculty and staff for their role in the College’s success, saying their teamwork is a key ingredient in the new initiatives he has begun.

Richey’s major accomplishments include:

• Creating two new Bachelor of Applied Science Degree programs to start in August 2013, the first four-year programs in the college’s history and a move that transformed BCC into a state college.
• Creating several new two-year A.A. degree programs and other certificate programs, the first such addition to the College’s curriculum in about a decade.
• Leading a year-long community outreach and research effort to rename BCC for its transformation into a state college, selecting the name Eastern Florida State College.
• Creating a new Career Planning and Development Center that has resulted in a dramatic increase in internships and the placement of students into jobs throughout the year, with more than 15,500 students passing through its programs.
• Crafting a Fiscal Year 2012-13 $75.4 million operating budget that included no tuition hikes for students for the first time in more than four years, saving students about $1.5 million.
• Winning a $26.7 million additional appropriation from the Florida Legislature, the largest single boost ever for the College with the money targeted for academic programs and new construction.
• Negotiating a new three-year collective bargaining agreement with the United Faculty of Florida Brevard Chapter.
• Creating the first ever enrollment management plan to establish a comprehensive approach to student recruitment and retention.
• Community College Week Magazine study showing BCC ranking 19th in the U.S. in awarding A.A. degrees among 1,200 community colleges nationwide, and ranking in the top 100 colleges in awarding A.A. degrees to minority students.
• Chronicle of Higher Education analysis of U.S. colleges and universities showing BCC has the second highest graduation rate in the 28-member Florida College System at 44.6 percent.
• Leading an initiative that resulted in a 100 percent increase in grant funding received by the college, an increase of more than $2 million.
• Adding $1.8 million in net assets to the BCC Foundation for scholarships, with the Foundation’s total assets climbing from $14.6 million to $16.4 million.