Hawkeye Community College President Dr. Linda Allen Announces Retirement
posted on Wednesday, January 16, 2019 in
College News
WATERLOO–Dr. Linda Allen has announced her plans to retire as president of Hawkeye Community College at the close of the contract year on June 30, 2019.
“This has been a very difficult decision, but I believe the time is right for me to step away from my administrative duties and spend more time with my recently retired husband and seven grandchildren,” she said.
Dr. Allen became president of the college in March 2011, after serving five years as Hawkeye’s vice president of Academic Affairs. During her tenure, the college expanded career programs in high schools across Hawkeye’s 10-county service area, helping students identify viable career pathways and gain valuable career skills and college credit before leaving high school.
“Students may not always see the career opportunities in their own community,” Dr. Allen said. “We’re able to help them see those connections.”
Dr. Allen also oversaw construction of the new Van G. Miller Adult Learning Center in downtown Waterloo, the first major project funded by the $25 million bond referendum overwhelming approved by voters in February 2015. The new three-story, 45,000-square foot building opened on January 2, 2019.
“We’re really making huge strides in helping members of our community get basic education and the skills they need to change their life trajectory,” Dr. Allen said. “What we do is so powerful – we are helping people gain the tools to change their lives. The impact of that is multi-generational. When you get someone the tools to get a job, that impacts their children, their family, their neighbors, and the entire community.”
As president, Dr. Allen also focused on efforts to remove barriers to education and partner with community organizations to better serve students. This includes the addition of student success specialists on campus and collaboration with the Northeast Iowa Food Bank to assist students who are food insecure.
“We have a Little Free Pantry on campus and the food bank’s truck comes to the Regional Transportation Training Center and soon the Van G. Miller Adult Learning Center,” she said. “That’s another way we can put someone on the path to success. We are very active in making sure we have as many different ways as we can to develop and support our students.”
Her leadership has gained recognition at the state and national levels. The Iowa Association of Community College Trustees named her Outstanding Chief Administrator in 2014, and in 2015 she received the Marie Y. Martin Chief Executive Award from the Association of Community College Trustees, which recognizes leadership and innovative contributions made by a community college chief executive.
“During my time at Hawkeye I worked to not only create every opportunity for our students to be successful, but to create a culture where faculty and staff also feel supported to take bold actions and be innovative,” she said. “I feel proud of the college and its growing recognition as being both an economic engine in the community and an agent of change.”
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