The Board of Trustees for the Northern Wyoming Community College District announced today that Dr. Walter Tribley has been selected as President of the District.
“We are delighted to welcome Dr. Tribley as our next President. His knowledge, experience, and passion for the community college mission make him the ideal selection,” said Norleen Healy, board chair, in a press release. “We are so very thankful to have had such a qualified pool of candidates, with very strong finalists, and Dr. Tribley rose to the top.”
The presidential search attracted more than 45 applicants. Dr. Pamila Fisher of the Association of Community College Trustees (ACCT) assisted with the search.
The selection caps a six-month national process that included public forums with each candidate earlier this week. The 14-member search committee composed of campus, board, and community representatives reviewed applications, conducted semi-finalist interviews, and recommended finalists to the board for consideration.
“We [the board of trustees] want to thank the search committee and everyone who participated in this process. The board is very appreciative of the college and the community for allowing us to do our job. We feel we have made a great choice with Dr. Tribley and know the college community will welcome him too,” said Healy.
“I am honored to be selected as President of the Northern Wyoming Community College District and to help the district continue to play its vital role in the region. The opportunity to join such an excellent college district to engage in the important work of transforming the lives of our students and drive the economic development of our region with NWCCD trustees, faculty, staff, and community stakeholders is extraordinary,” said Dr. Tribley in the release.
Most recently, Tribley has been serving as the Superintendent and President of the Monterey Peninsula Community College District in California since December 2012. He began his career in higher education as a faculty member at Seminole Community College in Florida. After earning tenure there and securing the college’s first grant from the National Science Foundation, he joined the University of Florida to teach biotechnology to educators and graduate students. Dr. Tribley moved on to Monterey Peninsula College after serving in several roles of increasing responsibility at Wenatchee Valley College for approximately 11 years culminating as Vice President of Instruction.
Dr. Tribley earned a bachelor’s degree in secondary science education, and a second bachelor’s and a master’s degree in biology from the University of Idaho. He earned his Ph.D. in Biochemistry from Washington State University. After completing his Ph.D., he was hired as a scientist in a biotechnology start-up company in California developing blood tests for the early detection of gynecologic cancers (primarily ovarian and breast cancers).
The trustees voted unanimously to hire Dr. Tribley.
Before adjournment, Trustee Debra Wendtland said the turnout and feedback from the public forums was incredible.
“We listened to everything they said, and read everything they said,” Wentland explained. “And they changed my mind. I thought I knew my mind until I listened to the people who work at both of these colleges. That was very powerful, frankly.”
Tribley will officially start his tenure as President of NWCCD on July 1, 2019.
