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Prior to the start of their first meeting, four longstanding business and community leaders in Alabama were sworn in by Judge Matt Fridy, Alabama Court of Civil Appeals, on Wednesday, June 14, to serve as members of the Alabama Community College System (ACCS) Board of Trustees. An incumbent trustee was also sworn in to serve a second four-year term.
Governor Kay Ivey appointed the following to serve on the ACCS Board of Trustees: Britton Lightsey, Chief Executive Officer of Tombigbee Electric Cooperative, to represent District 4; Ron Houston, President and Chief Executive Officer of Houston Resource Group, to represent District 6; and Tim McCartney, Chairman of the Alabama Workforce Council, to serve At-Large. John Mitchell, who owns several automobile dealerships in the southeastern region of the state and was first appointed by Ivey in 2019, will continue to represent District 2. Full bios of each are available at www.accs.edu/trustees.
The Board is the governing body of the ACCS, created by the Alabama Legislature in Act No. 2015-125 to create a “unified system of community colleges and programs to deliver excellence in academic education, adult education and workforce development” to meet the needs of citizens, businesses and industries. Board trustees are business leaders who know the day-to-day experience and challenges of running businesses, including the challenges of recruiting and training a skilled workforce.
The newest members of the Board of Trustees were sworn in as the system celebrates its 60th year of serving Alabama as one, unified system of 24 community and technical colleges in the state.
“Our mission as the Alabama Community College System is to help lead change, growth and innovation in education for Alabama’s workforce, and since the inception of an independent Board of Trustees made up of business leaders, entrepreneurs, economic developers and educators in the state, we’ve made significant headway,” said Jimmy H. Baker, Chancellor of the Alabama Community College System.
“There’s no doubt in my mind that Mr. Houston, Mr. Lightsey, Mr. McCartney and Mr. Mitchell will continue the excellent work of the Board to bring a unified focus to what we do every day in the community college system to prepare students and improve communities through better education and workforce development opportunities.”
The Board of Trustees is comprised of the state Governor, seven members appointed by the governor, one state-at-large member and one ex officio, nonvoting member appointed by the governor and serving on the State Board of Education. The governor serves as President of the Board.
The remaining ACCS Board of Trustees include: J.E.B Shell – District 1; Valerie Gray – District 3; Goodrich ‘Dus’ Rogers, Vice Chair – District 5; Llevelyn Rhone, Chair – District 7; and Dr. Yvette Richardson, Ex-Officio Member.
About ACCS
Alabama’s community and technical colleges were unified as one system May 3, 1963, when legislators laid the groundwork for a unified system of institutions to focus on accessible training in “arts and sciences and in useful skills and trades” for current and future labor needs. Sixty years have passed, but that important cause remains the singular purpose of the Alabama Community College System (ACCS). With 24 community and technical colleges in more than 130 locations and an economic impact of $6.6 billion, the ACCS is Alabama’s gateway to first-class, affordable education and technical training to compete in a constantly evolving workforce. More than 155,000 Alabamians benefit from the various certification, credential, dual enrollment and degree programs ACCS offers alongside leading industry partners. The System includes the Alabama Technology Network, which provides extensive training and service offerings directly to business and industry. ACCS is governed by the Alabama Community College System Board of Trustees.
