CHICAGO HEIGHTS | The Prairie State College board of trustees announced Wednesday the selection of three finalists for the position of college president, according to a news release.
Alex J. Kajstura, Valerie R. Roberson, and Terri Winfree will interview with the board and the search committee and participate in open forums beginning April 2. Schedules for the interviews and open forums will be available beginning Monday at prairiestate.edu/PresidentialSearch/finalists.html.
According to the release, Kajstura is the campus president of the Northwest Campus at Pima County Community College in Tucson, Ariz. He previously served as provost at Tidewater Community College in Virginia, provost and then dean of Daytona Beach Community College in Florida, associate dean of Palm Beach Community College in Florida, director at Texas State Technical College, and member of the chemistry and physics faculty at Northeast Texas Community College.
Kajstura earned a Ph.D. in higher education administration from Southern Illinois University, a master of business administration degree from LeTourneau University, a master of science degree in organic chemistry from Texas Tech University, and a bachelor of science degree in chemistry from Silesian University in Poland. He is a regular presenter at League for Innovation conferences.
Roberson is the vice president of academic affairs at Joliet Junior College, the release states. Roberson earned a Ph.D. in higher education administration from Illinois State University, a master of arts in adult education from Roosevelt University, and a bachelor of science in psychology from Bradley University. She also has done graduate work at Northwestern University.
Roberson began a teaching career at the Business Institute of Chicago at City Colleges of Chicago, where she designed custom training to assist area employers. Roberson moved to Triton College, where she served as director of adult education. She then became the first director of adult education at Heartland Community College in Normal, Ill. At Heartland, she held several positions including vice president for institutional advancement. Roberson became associate vice chancellor for adult education at City Colleges of Chicago and president of Olive-Harvey College. She then joined Joliet Junior College as its vice president of academic affairs. Throughout the lengthy illness of the college president, Roberson worked directly with the Joliet Junior College board of trustees managing institutional research for the college, completing its strategic plan, and guiding it to renewed accreditation.
Winfree is the vice president of community and economic development at Prairie State, the release states. She has a Ph.D. from Colorado State University, a master of communication and a bachelor’s degree in communication from Governors State University, and an associate degree from PSC.
In her current position, Winfree has worked successfully with the PSC board of trustees, several related colleges and universities, employers, and state and federal elected officials. She has written and administered a number of grants during her association with PSC. Winfree has held several other positions at PSC, including associate dean and then dean of continuing professional education, and manager of the Matteson Area Center.
The PSC board of trustees and the search committee selected four people for interviews. Monday, one of the four candidates withdrew from the search.
President Eric Radtke announced in January his retirement effective at the end of this academic year. Radtke said at the time he was retiring for personal reasons to spend more time with his family. The announcement came one day after published reports alleging nepotism with a recent hire, although a spokeswoman at the time said those reports had nothing to do with Radtke's decision.
Please Wait…