Belinda Miles Appointed President of WCC

Dr. Belinda S. Miles will be inaugurated as the President of Westchester Community College on Friday October 2. She was appointed by The State University of New York Board of Trustees to start in her new position in January 2015. She replaced Dr. Joseph Hankin who has led the college since 1971 and is the nation's longest serving community college president. Miles was formerly Provost and Executive Vice President of Access, Learning, and Success at Cuyahoga Community College (Tri-C).

Miles has nearly three decades of experience in higher education, primarily at the community college level. At Access, Learning and Success at Cuyahoga Community College (Tri-C) she oversaw four campuses and multiple extension sites in Cleveland and surrounding suburbs. The institution annually serves 48,000 students in a wide scope of career and transfer degree programs.

"I look forward to this opportunity to engage with students, faculty, staff, and the community to advance a comprehensive learning and success agenda. Together we will work to expand Westchester Community College's role in helping students achieve their academic and career goals," says Miles.

Details on attending the inauguration at 2 pm on Friday and watching it on a webcast are available here. 

"It is an honor to approve Dr. Miles' appointment as the next president of Westchester Community College," says SUNY Board Chairman H. Carl McCall. "The SUNY community colleges were founded on providing unlimited access to quality, affordable higher education and job training to all New Yorkers, and Westchester Community College has done this with widespread success for nearly 70 years. I am confident that the college will continue to prosper under Dr. Miles' experienced leadership."

"Dr. Miles is a passionate leader with precisely the right balance of academic and leadership experience, and she shares in many of the core values expressed in our strategic plan for SUNY," says SUNY Chancellor Nancy L. Zimpher. "I look forward to working with her as Westchester Community College and all of SUNY continues to increase access, completion, and success for students."

Westchester Community College Board of Trustees Chair David Swope says, "We look forward to working with Dr. Miles to usher in a new era here at the college. Her national standing as a leader in the field of community college administration, her awareness of the role of technology in higher education, and her knowledge of the changing role of community colleges will be important as we continue to expand our resources and add new educational offerings to the community."

The new president of Westchester Community College has had a distinguished career, primarily in the area of community college leadership. Her record as a passionate advocate for the promotion of community college accessibility, an administrator who challenged and supported students through high quality academic programs, and a leader focused on improving student success and completion outcomes, was built primarily in Cleveland, Ohio.

Originally from Queens, New York, she attended public schools including the City University of New York's York College, earning a B.A. in Political Science. She attained an M.A. in Educational Psychology and an Ed.D. in Higher Education Organization and Leadership Development from Columbia University Teachers College. She and her husband, Keith have relocated to Westchester County. Their son Gordon recently graduated from Tuskegee University with a B.S. in Engineering and is employed in this field.

Westchester Community College is more than just the county's largest educational institution. It is a living, breathing part of Westchester that goes beyond the influence of a typical college and affects the lives of all who enter its doors. Our faculty serve as a community of scholars for an increasingly diverse population of students; as the county has evolved, so has the institution, and our award-winning faculty members educate both new immigrants and longstanding members of the community. Our instructors serve a wide range of students from nearly 200 countries, ranging from teenagers to mature adults.