Vermont State Colleges Chancellor Tim Donovan has announced that Dan Smith, currently serving as interim president of Vermont Tech, has been chosen to lead the school as its full time president. The appointment of President Smith comes after seven months in an interim leadership position at the college. A lawyer by training, Smith served as VSC’s director of community relations and public policy, before assuming the interim role at Vermont Tech.
“After seeing Dan’s commitment over seven months in a challenging environment and hearing feedback from the college community, I have very confidently recommended that Dan Smith is the right person to lead the college at this important time,” Donovan said. “Dan has deep hands-on experience leading Vermont Tech as interim president, and I believe in his ability to guide the school through complex situations. More importantly, he has the support and trust of the students, faculty, staff, administration of Vermont Tech, of the VSC, and of the VSC Board of Trustees.”
Dan Smith, with Publisher Jon Boutin and Governor Jim Douglas, was a Vermont Business Magazine Rising Star in 2010. The 2014 Rising Star event is Thursday, November 6.
VSC Board Chair Martha O’Connor affirmed that confidence.
“Having monitored Dan’s work as interim, the Board believes that Dan is uniquely qualified to ensure Vermont Tech’s ongoing success; he has demonstrated a commitment to candor, to meeting challenges head-on, while proving a genuine passion for the school, tremendous respect for its faculty, students and staff, and an infectious belief in Vermont Tech’s future.”
“As someone who grew up in Vermont, I am humbled to have been asked to play this role at this unique institution. We have our work cut out for us, but when I see the challenges and opportunities facing Vermont, from an aging population requiring compassionate health care, to climate change, renewable energy and efficiency, to the construction of homes, buildings, roads and bridges, new software, technology and entrepreneurial businesses, to locally grown food, I know that Vermont Tech students and graduates will play a vital role in our future,” said Smith.
Smith will formally assume the presidency of the college on November 10, 2014.
About Vermont Tech– Vermont Tech is a leading public college with a mission of applied education. One of the five Vermont State Colleges, Vermont Tech serves students from throughout Vermont, New England, and beyond at its two residential campuses in Williston and Randolph Center, regional campuses in Brattleboro and Bennington, and at six nursing campuses located throughout the state. Vermont Tech takes an optimistic, rooted and personal approach to education to support students in gaining the confidence and practical skills necessary to not only see their potential, but to experience it. Our academic programs encompass a wide range of engineering technology, agricultural, health, and business fields that are vital to producing the knowledgeable workers needed most by employers in the state and in the region.
Source: VSC. 10.30.2014. www.vtc.edu. VERY TOP PHOTO: With Doug Smith, director of the VTC flight school, with the program's new sea plane in September. VBM photos.