NIC has a new interim vice president of instruction. Jim Perez officially took over the position March 6.
Perez will be filling the role for six months, until after a new college president is selected to replace current president Priscilla Bell, and the search for a new vice president can officially begin.
“As much as I enjoy working, I was getting very comfortable with being retired,” Perez said, after confirming that he has no plans to seek a permanent position with NIC.
A Spokane resident, with a long history of working as a college administrator, Perez served as college president of Spokane’s Institute for Extended Learning for five years. Before then he was the vice president for student services at Shoreline Community College and was the associate dean of student development services at Columbia Basin Community College. Perez also worked at Eastern Washington University and Gonzaga University.
Since retiring, however, Perez has also filled in as interim vice president for several Spokane colleges. Despite being given several opportunities to take interim positions across the country, Perez has turned them down, preferring to stay local where he can be close to family.
It’s this impressive resume and close location that Perez believes led Bell, who he’s known since early in his career when the two were serving in the student services of separate colleges, to ask him to fill the job.
While Perez said there has been some challenge in learning the finer points of an Idaho education system that differs greatly from its Washington counterpart, and the expected awkwardness of jumping into a new position, he says that his co-workers have been nothing but extremely helpful.
A welcoming, helpful staff and an enthusiastic faculty that is “reflective of the quality education” at NIC are part of the reason Perez said the people on campus are his favorite part of the college.
Perez said he also appreciates the students.
“I’m always very much impressed with the energy students exhibit in their thirst for knowledge,” Perez said. “Coming here I get rejuvenated by that. I love seeing that. I love working on a college campus.”
A desire to help students, particularly under-represented populations, was Perez’s primary motivation for initially specializing in community college systems.
The youngest of the nine children in a family of migrant workers, Perez was the first to attend college.
“I realized there were many individuals like me, who need opportunities to access and complete college,” Perez said.
NIC, with a large number of non-traditional students and several outreach centers in rural areas, is a perfect fit for him, according to Perez.
“They [non-traditional students] just need support, they just need an opportunity. That’s why I like community colleges. They have an open door policy,” Perez said. “Colleges like NIC are meeting that need, and it’s very rewarding to be a part of that process.”
During the early portion of his career, Perez was heavily involved in growing Eastern Washington University’s Chicano Education Program from its origin as a club into a program, something he considers one of his proudest accomplishments.
He has also been involved with Trio (a student support service) for many years.
During his time here, he said he hopes to volunteer some of his free time to the campus’ own Latino Club.
“I’d like to get to know them [the members] and their program, see where they’re at, and see if I can help in any way,” Perez said.
