SCC has transformed since 1991, when Dr. Kathryn Jeffery left her full-time counseling position to pursue more challenges in higher education. The College has seen the implementation of new and more student support programs, counselors, staff and faculty, courses, an increase in Technical Education, new facilities…phew! It could be daunting, but not for Dr. Kathryn Jeffery, who arrived in March to lead SCC to new prominence as its new President. Following are some of the myriad duties and accomplishments that took her around SCC and back again-all in 90 days!

"The changes that I've seen have all been for the better, and the growth is phenomenal," said Dr. Jeffery. Although her role at the college has changed markedly, from a full-time counselor who worked directly with students to the chief administrator who looks at the broad spectrum of the college through a leadership and management lens, Dr. Jeffery has found time to drop in to the counseling areas and division offices and to talk to students in the hallways.

Foundation Reception for
President Jeffery.

"As the college president, I see the college from a perspective that enables me to understand the importance of having critical thinking and interpersonal communication skills, caring about and valuing things that matter to others," she said, "along with a great sense of humor."

During the few months leading up to the end of the spring semester, Dr. Jeffery spent much of her time engaged in the hiring of new faculty-more than have ever been hired before in a single recruitment period. She met with each of the final candidates personally.

"I look for people who aren't just knowledgeable in their fields but can contribute, enhance, and are constantly growing as individuals. They bring a depth of knowledge that can expand what we're doing in their areas," she said.

 
SCC Retirement Reception

Although the hiring season can be grueling, Dr. Jeffery has learned to take time to find fun, even on the most hectic of days. Los Rios's many end-of-the-year events and activities were just the ticket to some much-needed entertainment. Dr. Jeffery attended the Susurrus Literary Journal reading, sky-watched at the SCC Observatory, attended the 40th Anniversary Celebration for Folsom Lake's Placerville campus, the SCC Emeritus Faculty Luncheon, "A Night With Zinn," and an SCC choral performance. Finally, she presided over SCC's 91st Commencement Ceremony and participated in the Groundbreaking Ceremony for SCC's new West Sacramento Education Center.

She has also managed to reconnect with a few old friends and begin to re-build relationships within the Sacramento community. She was a judge for an essay contest sponsored by Physicians for Social Responsibility and participated in a radio interview for KXPR (Capital Public Radio) in connection with the contest. She even rapped to middle-school students at an event called "Entering the College Zone."

"The college benefits from its employees being out in the community, going to restaurants, events-everything, everyone is inter-connected," she said. Having worked directly with legislators while at Hennepin Technical College, she found that her interactions with these legislators had a profound effect and aims to build such relationships in Sacramento.

All of her past experiences in community college leadership have prepared her well to serve as president of SCC.

"Through conversations I'm gaining insight regarding the ways in which many of SCC's staff and faculty think we might take this institution from local prominence to being premier nationwide. Our significant achievements, Forensics excellence, Allied Health and Journalism awards, and our student athletics programs are indications that we can be a model for the state."

West Sacramento Groundbreaking Ceremony

Getting used to the flurry of activity at a college this size while maintaining a sense of presence on campus is Dr. Jeffery's greatest challenge, but she has achieved some major milestones. Reaching the end of the interview process and feeling like she, the interview committees and the senior leadership team had done an outstanding job of identifying new faculty was one of these successes. Presiding over the commencement ceremony, with a record number of participants and the excitement and energy that accompanies such a celebration, was another. And finally, feeling like she has come home-with a smooth re-entry into the, albeit transformed, milieu that is SCC-has given her great satisfaction.

SCC is heading toward a clean/green future, the theme of this issue of CityAdvantage. When asked what her 'green wish' for SCC's students is, Dr. Jeffery said, "My 'green' wish is that our students leave the college with in-depth knowledge of how what they do impacts someone else, locally and globally. We have a responsibility for making the world a better place-and that's not just rhetoric, it's reality. In every way, we are all interconnected. I try to employ this ethic in everything I do and it has become a major part of who I am." Infusing this ethic into her leadership at the college while expanding the boundaries of influence and interaction of SCC is Dr. Jeffery's aim for the future of the college.

Dr. Kathryn Jeffery was President of Hennepin Technical College in Minnesota from 2006 until 2008. From 2004 until 2006, she was Chief Campus Administrator for the Charleston campus of the Community College of Southern Nevada and also served as Interim Dean for Arts and Letters at the college. Prior to 2004, she was vice president of Columbia College in Sonora, California; dean of student services and coordinator of faculty and staff diversity for the California Community Colleges; and a counselor and coordinator of extended opportunity programs and services at Sacramento City College.