Delaware County Community College’s Board of Trustees in Pennsylvania has unanimously selected Dr. L. Joy Gates Black, currently vice chancellor for Academic Affairs and Student Success at Tarrant County College District (TCC) in Fort Worth, Texas, to become the school’s president.
Dr. Black will succeed Dr. Jerry Parker, who will retire on June 30, after 40 years of service to the college, including 14 years as president. She will be the college’s fourth president since its founding 50 years ago. She also will be the first woman and the first African American to head the college.
A well-respected administrator with decades of experience at both community colleges and four-year institutions, Dr. Black was chosen by the Board of Trustees after an extensive national search. Delaware County Community College serves 28,000 credit and non-credit students annually at its campuses in suburban Philadelphia and online.
“While we will miss the expert leadership and stewardship of Dr. Parker, we believe that Dr. Gates Black’s extraordinary track record in prioritizing and driving student completion represents a perfect fit with the college and our new strategic plan,” said Michael L. Ranck, chairman of the DCCC’s 13-member Board of Trustees. “We look forward to a seamless transition based on the qualifications and expertise she brings to the helm.”
As vice chancellor, Dr. Black is the chief academic and student services officer for Tarrant County College District, a comprehensive community college in Fort Worth, Texas that annually serves more than 100,000 credit and non-credit students at multiple campuses. She joined TCC in 2010 as vice chancellor for Student Success and served as interim president of Tarrant’s South Campus.
“Every community college is focused on student success and completion,” Dr. Black said. “But what attracted me to this role is that Delaware County Community College has made a meaningful, tangible investment in both success and completion as measurable outcomes. The new strategic plan represents an honest and thoughtful examination of where the college is today, and where it aspires to be. I look forward to working with the college and the community to achieve these strategic goals and collectively move to the next level of achievement.”
Dr. Black holds a graduate studies certificate and a Master’s Degree in education from Cambridge College, a Doctorate of Education in organizational leadership from Pepperdine University, and has pursued additional doctoral studies in human and organizational development from Fielding University in Santa Barbara, California. A U.S. Air Force veteran and a native of Dayton, Texas, Dr. Black is married to Dillet Black. They have four children and five grandchildren.
