Ross Gittell, chancellor of the Community College System of New Hampshire, will step down from the position after nine years to become the next president of Bryant University in Rhode Island.
The university and CCSNH made separate announcements Wednesday about the change in leadership. Gittell will serve as Bryant’s ninth president, beginning on July 1, and will succeed Ronald K. Machtley, who has led the university since 1996.
CCSNH said Wednesday that Gittell will begin making the transition from his current position by early summer and that its trustees will prepare a search for his successor.
The news Wednesday came months after New Hampshire lawmakers called on Gittell to reverse plans to cut faculty and staff positions at New Hampshire Technical Institute in Concord and accused him of mischaracterizing his 2020-21 budget request. Lawmakers approved an additional $16 million budget request dedicated to maintaining staffing levels and supporting a tuition freeze. But the announcement of 10 layoffs late last year clashed with that vision, lawmakers told Gittell.
Gittell responded by saying his statements in spring 2019 were misinterpreted and that an additional 8 percent drop in enrollment created unforeseen circumstances.
Gittell’s career in education spans decades, and includes previous teaching positions at the Whittemore School and the Graduate School of Management and Urban Policy at the New School for Social Research in Manhattan, as well as the Graduate School of Education, Economics Department and the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.
In a statement Wednesday, Jeremy Hitchock, chairman of CCSNH’s board of trustees, cited some of Gittell’s accomplishments within the state’s community college system, including tuition stability for students, increasing partnerships with employers and high schools and new retention and support programs aimed at enhancing student success.
“While Ross has deeply valued his experience here at CCSNH, accepting the position at Bryant University is a step that aligns with his background and interests over many years in higher education, and is a position he feels drawn to after nearly a decade in his current role,” Hitchcock said.
Gittell said his years within CCNH have been the “most meaningful” and he will always value the opportunities afforded to him in the Granite State.
“I will never lose the appreciation for the community college mission and the students we serve, and the colleges’ positive impact on New Hampshire’s economy and quality of life,” he said in a statement. “I am grateful for the experiences here and for having worked with such a talented group of college faculty, staff, trustees, policy-makers and partners.”
The decision by the Bryant University board of trustees was unanimous.
“Dr. Gittell’s outstanding academic credentials and experience as the CEO of seven community colleges within a complex organizational setting make him a perfect fit to succeed the legendary Ron Machtley as Bryant’s next president,” William Conaty, chairman of the board of trustees, said in a statement.
Bryant University is located in Smithfield, Rhode Island and enrolls approximately 3,800 undergraduate students from 38 states and 49 countries.