MCC board seeking firm to find next president

An earlier version of this story should have read that Vicky Smith came to McHenry County College after serving as president of Neosho County Community College in eastern Kansas.

McHenry County College is seeking to hire a headhunting firm to find the next college president.

The firm will have until December to find a replacement for President Vicky Smith, who is retiring at the end of this year.

Officials have narrowed their selection from a list of 16 executive search firms. Two college trustees were tasked with researching the firms based on a set of criteria, including whether the firm had previous presidential search experience, had worked with community colleges, and has a local office.

"There were six search firms that we agreed and decided that we would pursue and learn more about what their specialties are, what their successes have been," said Ron Parrish, MCC trustee and previous board chairman, about the board's decision Thursday to request proposals from those firms.

They have until June 4 to submit proposals. The board then will pare down the list to three finalists and conduct in-person interviews before selecting a search firm next month, said Christina Haggerty, MCC spokeswoman.

"The goal would be to have that done in the month of June so that beginning in July, they would be able to begin the actual (president search) process," she said.

The MCC board has budgeted $150,000 for the president search. The president's base salary is between $210,000 and $220,000 yearly with added perks.

Smith announced her retirement in April. She came to MCC five years ago after serving as president of Neosho County Community College in eastern Kansas. Her last day is Dec. 31.

If the search for a replacement takes longer, there may be a need to train an interim president to take over Smith's duties, Parrish added.

"We're confident that if we select the right firm, we've got six months (to find a president)," Parrish said.

Parrish was part of the interviewing/selection committee that hired Smith in July 2010. During her nearly five years at the college's helm, Smith was instrumental in developing new programs and curriculum in the areas of health care, manufacturing and automotive technology, along with reaching out to nontraditional students, officials have said.