The Salt Lake Community College (SLCC) Board of Trustees and the Utah Board of Higher Education are pleased to announce the next phase in the search for the ninth president of SLCC. This next president will be SLCC replacing Dr. Deneece G. Huftalin, who after more than 10 years of service, announced her retirement in fall 2023.
In December 2023, the SLCC Board of Trustees and Utah Board of Higher Education contracted with AGB Search to lead the presidential search effort. The search committee accepted applications from February 6 to March 25, which resulted in an abundant and highly qualified candidate pool. Through an extensive interview and evaluation process, three candidates emerged as the finalists. Each of the final candidates has extensive experience leading community and/or technical colleges.
Each candidate will be visiting SLCC on April 24 for interviews and public forums. All are invited to attend the public forums, which will take place at various times in TB 104 on the Taylorsville Redwood Campus. Those unable to attend in person may attend via Zoom. For details about the forums, including times, locations, and the Zoom link, please click on the Public Forums tab below.
To submit questions in advance for the public forums, please email your questions to slccpresidentsearch@ushe.edu and use the subject line, “Question for the Public Forum.” The deadline for submitting forum questions is Tuesday, April 23, at 5 p.m.
Feedback on the candidates can be submitted via anonymous comment online or by email at slccpresidentsearch@ushe.edu. Deadline for submitting feedback is Wednesday, April 24, at 11:59 p.m.
The Utah Board of Higher Education will interview all the finalists before making its selection on April 26. Immediately after the selection is made, the next president of SLCC will be formally announced to the public. This announcement will take place the afternoon of Friday, April 26, in the Oak Room, located in the Student Center on the Taylorsville Redwood Campus.
SLCC Presidential Finalists
Joshua D. Baker, Ph.D.
Dr. Baker has more than eleven years of leadership experience in higher education and nearly two decades of experience in community colleges. He began as a faculty member at Highline Community College, near Seattle, and progressed through a range of faculty leadership positions. His career then took him to Vincennes University, where he served as the chief officer at Center Grove Early College in Greenwood, Indiana. He later held positions as a campus and instructional dean at Bates Technical College in Tacoma, Washington, where he led various programs. He then transitioned to the vice president of instruction at Pikes Peak Community College in Colorado Springs, Colorado, before assuming his current role as president of Mountwest Community and Technical College in Huntington, West Virginia.
Dr. Baker currently serves as a board member for the Huntington Chamber of Commerce, Huntington Area Development Counsel and Advantage Valley Development. He also serves on the Commission on Economic and Workforce Development of the American Association of Community Colleges. He previously served as a board member for the Red Cross, the National Council of Instructional Administrators and Reach Services for Youth. He has participated in a variety of community service, including youth sports.
Dr. Baker is a Presidential Fellowship Alum with The Aspen Institute College Excellence Program. His Ph.D. is in Community College Leadership from Oregon State University, and his dissertation is on Actions of Community College Presidents that Increase Organizational Trust. His master’s and bachelor’s degrees are from Brigham Young University. Dr. Baker is a proud community college alum. He and his wife, Toni, have three children, including two who are in college. They are avid hikers and enjoy exploring our amazing national parks.
Dean G. McCurdy, Ph.D.
Dean McCurdy, Ph.D., currently serves as senior vice president for academic affairs and provost at Ivy Tech Community College of Indiana, the largest singly-accredited comprehensive community college in the United States. In this role, he oversees academic programs, instructional design, educational technology, accreditation, student affairs, enrollment strategy, retention strategy, completion strategy, K-12 and transfer partnerships and Ivy Tech's online operations. Over his tenure, he has led efforts to grow enrollment by over 30,000 students, helped develop and launch a new strategic plan and partnered with campuses to achieve record highs in student retention and completions. Before his statewide role, Dr. McCurdy served as chancellor of the Ivy Tech Kokomo Service Area, where he oversaw the largest education project in the history of the region and led record accomplishments in fundraising, student and employee outcomes and alignment to workforce needs while supporting rapid economic development across the region.
Before Ivy Tech, Dr. McCurdy led the development and launch of the Bronson Healthy Living Campus at Kalamazoo Valley Community College — a workforce-based campus and programs designed in partnership with hospitals and community organizations in southwest Michigan. Between 2001 and 2013, he served in roles at Albion College (a four-year, independent college), including as the A. Merton Chickering professor of biology, chair of the Biology Department, and director of the Honors Program. Dr. McCurdy's work has resulted in award-winning teaching and research programs, and he has served on various boards for regional, national, and international organizations connected to education and workforce development.
A first-generation college graduate, Dr. McCurdy completed a Bachelor of Science (Honors) in Biology at Acadia University, a Ph.D. in Biology at Carleton University, and a post-doctoral fellowship through the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada.
Gregory F. Peterson, Ed.D.
Dr. Greg Peterson was appointed to serve as the president at Chandler-Gilbert Community College on July 1, 2018. Throughout his career, he has led key efforts in student learning and success impacting over 100,000 students, including developing transfer partnerships and college promise programs at multiple institutions and launching the first community college Artificial Intelligence program in the nation. Dr. Peterson works closely with industry partners and community leaders in strengthening workforce pipelines for students into family-sustaining careers and has served on local, state and national organizations to advance these efforts. He brings experience in student affairs and instructional programs and has worked at urban, suburban, and rural community colleges. Dr. Peterson was selected as an Aspen New President Fellow and was recently recognized as the East Valley Man of the Year by Positive Paths. He holds a doctorate in educational administration with an emphasis in community college leadership from the University of Texas at Austin; a master's degree in postsecondary, adult and continuing education from Portland State University; and a bachelor's degree in English from Brigham Young University. As a first-generation community college student, Dr. Greg Peterson has a passion and commitment to the community college mission of access and success for all students.
SLCC Board of Trustees
- Brady Southwick, Chair
- Lori Chillingworth, Vice Chair
- Sharon Eubank
- Tina Marriott Larson
- Dr. Jason Pickavance, SLCC Interim Provost of Academic Affairs
- Robert Pettitt, Dean, School of Health Sciences
- Gabe Byars, Faculty Senate Vice President
- Brandi Mair, Staff President
- Joyce Wambuyi, Student Body President
- Shawn Newell, Alumni Representative & Emeritus Trustee
- Ross Romero, CEO of Inclusion Strategies, Former Utah State Senator
April 24: Public Forums for Presidential Finalists
Salt Lake Community College: Taylorsville Redwood Campus
Rampton Technology Building (Room TB104)
4600 S Redwood Road, SLC, UT
- 1:00-1:45 p.m. – Joshua D. Baker
- 2:00-2:45 p.m. – Gregory F. Peterson
- 3:00-3:45 p.m. – Dean G. McCurdy
If you are unable to attend the public forums in person, please join us via Zoom.
Join Zoom Meeting
Passcode: 628699
Questions for the public forums may be submitted in advance at slccpresidentsearch@ushe.edu. Please use the subject line, “Question for the Public Forum.”
All members of the campus community and the public are also encouraged to submit feedback via an anonymous comment online or by email at slccpresidentsearch@ushe.edu.
April 24: Public Forums for Presidential Finalists
Salt Lake Community College: Taylorsville/Redwood Campus
Rampton Technology Building (Room TB104)
4600 S Redwood Road, SLC, UT
- 1:00-1:45 p.m. – Joshua D. Baker
- 2:00-2:45 p.m. – Gregory F. Peterson
- 3:00-3:45 p.m. – Dean G. McCurdy
If you are unable to attend the public forums in person, please join us via Zoom.
Join Zoom Meeting
Passcode: 628699
Questions for the public forums may be submitted in advance at slccpresidentsearch@ushe.edu. Please use the subject line, “Question for the Public Forum.”
All members of the campus community and the public are also encouraged to submit feedback via an anonymous comment online or by email at slccpresidentsearch@ushe.edu.
April 26: Announcement of New President for SLCC
The Utah Board of Higher Education may convene a public meeting at Salt Lake Community College, Taylorsville Redwood Campus in the Student Center (Oak Room), at 4 p.m. to announce the next president of the College.* Following the announcement, a reception for the new president will be held at 4:30 p.m.
*In the event that the Utah Board of Higher Education opts to convene at another time, that meeting will be announced at a later date.