President

The City Colleges of Chicago (CCC) has opened the search for President of Wilbur Wright College. Established in 1934, Wright College’s current 23-acre site in the Northwest Side of Chicago opened in 1993. Wright College also has a presence in Humboldt Park with its Vocational Education Center. Serving as City Colleges’ Center of Excellence and Computer Science, Wright College is one of the seven two-year colleges comprising the City Colleges district and is a Hispanic-Serving Institution. The President reports to the Chancellor of the City Colleges.

With an approaching 90th year anniversary, focus on the college’s mission and values will continue to be realized through innovation; student-centered attention; diversity, equity, and inclusion; academic quality; and community. Wright College offers an exceptional student experience to a richly diverse body of approximately 13,000 learners annually, all seeking a high‐quality education through associate degree and certificate programs, baccalaureate transfer, workforce preparation, career advancement, and personal development. Early College studies for high school students, adult and continuing education, high school equivalency, and English as a Second Language classes also are offered. The Wright College Rams compete in Division II of the National Junior College Athletic Association.

Wilbur Wright College is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. Among the college’s signature programs are engineering, computer science, and paralegal studies, along with computerized numerical control. National and statewide recognition of Wright College and its students is seen through Excelencia in Education’s prestigious Seal of Excelencia and the selection of the Engineering Pathway Program as a 2023 Example of Excelencia, the 2024 Carnegie Foundation’s Elective Classification for Community Engagement, and the current Jack Kent Cooke Foundation Scholarship recipients, where the three Illinois recipients are Wright College students.

The Wright College President will be expected to build upon the institution’s current strategic plan. The college will welcome a motivational team builder, team member, and team player, one who inspires trust, respect, and unity. The ideal candidate’s leadership style will be characterized as approachable, congenial, and transparent.

Attributes

The Wilbur Wright College community seeks a successful and experienced leader, one who values teaching, learning, and scholarship and will demonstrate an intellectual and emotional commitment to the college’s mission. Importantly, the selected candidate will articulate the values of liberal arts, career and technical pursuits, and adult education learning. The successful candidate must meet the attributes and experiences that follow:

  • Transformative administrative style at the senior level with a vision for the long-term success of Wilbur Wright College;
  • Skilled financial manager with a record of success in finances, budget allocation, and resource generation;
  • Commitment to a student-centered focus on access, retention, and positive outcomes as a student success advocate;
  • Background in institutionalizing diversity, equity, and inclusion in policies, procedures, and practices toward full social justice in a supportive environment;
  • Successful work with accrediting bodies and institutional reviews;
  • Significant enrollment knowledge and ability to be a growth manager;
  • Knowledge of and success with sound strategic planning and clear decision making;
  • Practitioner of collaborative leadership and tenets of shared governance;
  • Entrepreneurial, innovative pursuit of new ideas and advancements through technology and technological education;
  • Champion of Wilbur Wright College in partnership with all stakeholders, including state and city governments, businesses, foundations, K-12 programs, the CCC District office, statewide higher education, and grassroots outreach;
  • Collaborative, unifying style in support of a collective bargaining environment;
  • Track record as an effective communicator and spokesperson with strong oral, written, listening, and interpersonal skills;
  • Experience as a full-time teacher and/or administrator in a two-year college (preferred);
  • Earned doctorate from a regionally accredited institution of higher education (preferred); and
  • Master’s degree required.

The President of Wilbur Wright College must be a resident of the city of Chicago.

Mark Potter
Provost
City Colleges of Chicago

Susan Colon
Associate Professor, Speech Department
Wilbur Wright College

Joseph Moctezuma
Assistant Professor, English Department
Wilbur Wright College

Soma Dey
Associate Professor, Physical Science Department
Wilbur Wright College

Jessica Choe
Assistant Professor, Humanities Department
Wilbur Wright College

Tineka Scalzo
Assistant Professor, Library
Wilbur Wright College

Maybelle Sanchez
SGA President

Connor O’Reilly
SGA Secretary

Doris Espiritu
Senior Advisor to the Provost and Dean of the Center of Excellence in Computer Science and Engineering
Wilbur Wright College

Maria Ochoa
Dean of Humboldt Park Vocational Educational Center

Maria Llopiz
Associate Dean of Student Services
Wilbur Wright College

Stephen Vaughn
Adult Educator
Wilbur Wright College

Mechelle Rodriguez
College Administrative Assistant
Wilbur Wright College

Marc Schulman
President and CEO, Eli’s Cheesecake

Janice Fitzgerald
Senior Executive Search Consultant
AGB Search
janice.fitzgerald@agbsearch.com / 717-580-0663

Jim McCormick
Senior Executive Search Consultant
AGB Search
jim.mccormick@agbsearch.com / 651-238-5188

Nominations and Applications

The City Colleges of Chicago will identify a caring thought leader who is able to lead change while uplifting a culture of community in the college, the city of Chicago, and throughout the college’s Northwest Side, Humboldt Park, and adjacent neighborhoods. The new president will work toward realizing City Colleges’ vision “to be recognized as the city’s most accessible higher education engine of socioeconomic mobility and racial equity – empowering all Chicagoans to take part in building a stronger and more just city.”

Applications should be received by March 29, 2024, and must include the following: a letter of interest (not more than three pages); a current résumé (or curriculum vitae); and the names of five professional references with each person’s position, office or home address, e-mail address, and telephone numbers. References will not be contacted without prior authorization. It is anticipated that the new President will be selected by May 2024.

Application materials should be submitted in PDF format through the AGB Search portal at: Wilbur Wright College – President.

Nominations, expressions of interest, or questions regarding the application process should be directed to wilburwrightpresident@agbsearch.com or to the AGB Search team:

Additional information about the City Colleges of Chicago and Wilbur Wright College may be found at www.ccc.edu.

It is against the law for City Colleges as a recipient of Federal financial assistance to discriminate on the following bases against any individual in the United States, on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, political affiliation or belief; and against any beneficiary of programs financially assisted under Title I of the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (WIA), on the basis of the beneficiary’s citizenship/status as a lawfully admitted immigrant authorized to work in the United States, or his or her participation in any WIA Title I-financially assisted program or activity.

About Wilbur Wright College

Wilbur Wright College is a federally designated Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) committed to offering high-quality opportunities to students of every background to advance their education and their lives. Wright’s main campus is in Dunning on the city’s Northwest side. Its satellite campus, Humboldt Park Vocational Education Center, is located on the city’s West side in Humboldt Park. 

As an HSI, more 60% of Wright students are from Latinx backgrounds, 19% are White, and 6% Black and Asian respectively. At Wright, more than 600 employees serve more than 12,000 adult education, credit, and continuing education students. Wright is a comprehensive community college, offering credit classes in a wide range of subjects. There are also continuing education classes and free high school diploma prep and ESL courses. 

Each of the seven City Colleges has a Center of Excellence and Wright’s Center of Excellence is in Engineering and Computer Science. The program has grown from just a handful of students in 2018 to more than 500 today and was recently named a 2023 Example of Excelencia by Excelencia in Education.  These world class courses help students earn an associate degree and then move on to top engineering programs in the country thanks to our unique guaranteed admissions transfer pathways. Qualifying students who complete the program are guaranteed a spot as a junior at one of transfer partners with all the credits earned at Wright—saving them time and money. 

In 2021, Wright College was certified with the Seal of Excelencia by Excelencia in Education, the nation’s premier authority on efforts accelerating Latino student success in higher education. Wright earned this award in part due to its data driven positive momentum for Latino students, dedication to transforming the environment to a place where Latino students thrive, and strategies in leadership that focus on advancing Latino success. Wright is certified with the Seal of Excelencia through 2024. 

Regardless of the program a Wright student is enrolled in, they have access to a robust suite of support services. These resources are offered at no cost and are designed to help students in the classroom, outside of the classroom, on their transfer journey, or on their way to in-demand employment. They include mental health support, one-on-one academic advising, tutoring, access to the food pantry, and access to the Career Center. They also include tailored support for first-generation students, adult learners, students with disabilities, undocumented students, and veterans. 

Wright is committed to its community of students, faculty, and staff, and the Dunning neighborhood where it’s located. The American Council on Education awarded Wright College with the 2024 Carnegie Elective Classification for Community Engagement. The classification recognizes colleges and universities throughout the United States for their efforts to engage with their larger communities. Wright College is the only community college in Illinois that holds the Carnegie Elective Classification for Community Engagement. It will hold its classification until 2032. 

In addition, Wright College is the U.S. Department of State’s first and only current community college partner for its Diplomacy Lab. Diplomacy Lab allows students to research and invent innovative solutions to real-world global challenges under the guidance of faculty for college credit. 

Wright College is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission.  

As one of the City Colleges of Chicago, Wilbur Wright College is governed by the City Colleges of Chicago Board of Trustees. 

To learn more about Wilbur Wright College, read the college’s viewbook: https://www.flipsnack.com/CityCollegesofChicago/viewbook-wilbur-wright-college/full-view.html 

To learn more about City Colleges of Chicago’s 2021-2025 strategic framework and Wilbur Wright College’s 2021-2025 strategic plan, visit: ccc.edu/strategicplan 

To read City Colleges of Chicago’s annual update, visit: https://www.flipsnack.com/CityCollegesofChicago/forward-focused-community-centered-2023-in-review.html  

To read City Colleges of Chicago’s FY2023 Annual Operating Budget Book, visit: https://www.ccc.edu/departments/Documents/Finance%20Documents/FY2023%20Final%20Budget%20Book.pdf