Presidential Search Committee recommends two candidates

July 14, 2010

The Presidential Search Committee today announced that it will recommend two candidates to the board of trustees of Cincinnati State Technical and Community College. The recommended candidates are:

• Dr. Mitchel D. Livingston, vice president for Student Affairs, Chief Diversity Officer and Professor of Educational Studies at the University of Cincinnati.
• Dr. O’dell M. Owens, a physician and the current Hamilton County Coroner and a former member of the University of Cincinnati board of trustees.

The Presidential Search Committee, which has been meeting since May, has screened more than 20 applications and nominations.

Mark Walton, a member of the Cincinnati State board of trustees and chairman of the search committee, said the search produced a strong field of highly qualified candidates to succeed interim president Dr. John Henderson, who has been serving since November, 2007.

Michael Oestreicher, chairman of the board of trustees at Cincinnati State, said the task now is to choose a candidate who “embodies the characteristics of greatest importance to Cincinnati State stakeholders, can build upon the significant advances it has made in the past few years, and will lead the College in fulfilling the increasingly important role it plays in the educational fabric and economic vitality of our city, the region and the state.’’

Owens and Livingston are scheduled to visit Cincinnati State July 21, 22 and 23 for a series of meetings with students, faculty, staff, administrators and community members. A community session with Dr. Owens is scheduled for 4:30-5:30 p.m. Wednesday, July 21 in the Conference Center (Room 432) in the Main Building at Cincinnati State’s Clifton Campus. A similar session with Dr. Livingston is scheduled for 5-6 p.m. Thursday, July 22 in the same location.

The full Cincinnati State board of trustees, after considering responses from persons attending the campus sessions, will meet independently with the candidates. Oestreicher said the board hopes to make a decision by mid-August.

A complete schedule of meetings, as well more information about each candidate, is available at www.cincinnatistate.edu/presidentialsearch.

ABOUT THE CANDIDATES

Mitchel D. Livingston
Vice President for Student Affairs & Chief Diversity Officer
University of Cincinnati

Dr. Mitchel D. Livingston is vice president for Student Affairs, Chief Diversity Officer and professor of Educational Studies at the University of Cincinnati. Prior to his current responsibilities, Dr. Livingston also managed human resources and public safety at UC. He joined UC in 1994 after serving as vice president for Student Affairs at the University at Albany, State University of New York, and dean of students at Ohio State University.

After earning bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Education from Southern Illinois University, he was awarded a Ph.D. in Higher Education Administration at Michigan State University with a minor in Labor Industrial Relations.

Noted accomplishments include 40 years of administrative experience at six different universities, founding the Just Community Initiative at the University at Albany and University of Cincinnati, establishing the University of Cincinnati enrollment management model and originating the MainStreet campus transformation project. Dr. Livingston has served as national keynote speaker, panelist, consultant or participant at numerous professional functions. He has been an effective fund raiser in several multi-million dollar campaigns.

Dr. Livingston is a board member of Fifth Third Bank, Cincinnati Institute for Fine Arts, CET/Connect Public Television, the Center for Holocaust and Humanity Education, National Underground Railroad Freedom Center and is former board chairman of BRIDGES for a Just Community. He also serves as a mentor for the St. John’s Social Services Young Men’s Program.

Dr. O’dell M. Owens
Hamilton County Coroner

Dr. O’dell M. Owens, a native Cincinnatian, attended Woodward High School, Antioch College, and Yale University, where he earned his M.D., a master’s in public health and completed a residency in Obstetrics and Gynecology. He also served at Harvard Medical School as clinical instructor and completed a fellowship in Reproductive Endocrinology.

Upon returning to Cincinnati, he established an in-vitro fertilization program and achieved Cincinnati’s first successful conception and delivery, and first pregnancy, from a frozen embryo. His many awards include being named one of the Bicentennial’s 200 Greater Cincinnatians in recognition of community service, and one of Black Enterprise Magazine’s Top 15 Black Doctors in America. In 2004, Dr. Owens was elected Hamilton County Coroner and re-elected in 2008.

Dr. Owens’ previous board membership includes the Executive Committee of the Yale Medical Student School Alumni, the Board for Antioch College, the Cincinnati Health Department and the University of Cincinnati Board of Trustees. He currently serves as a member of the Board of Directors for the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden, the Greater Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport, and US Bank.

Dr. Owens is actively involved in the Cincinnati community working with disadvantaged youth to motivate them to reach their full potential, and in that role has made frequent television appearances.