He came to lead community college with 1,200 students. Now it has 30,000. He’s leaving

This story was first published by IdahoEdNews.org on Feb. 18.

After overseeing a 12-year period of almost uninterrupted growth, the College of Western Idaho’s president is retiring.

Bert Glandon announced his retirement during a board of trustees meeting Thursday.

“It’s been my distinct pleasure to serve the amazing students, faculty and staff here at CWI for the last 12 years,” Glandon said in a news release. “It’s been the highest honor for me to wake up each day and work on their behalf.”

Glandon succeeded Dennis Griffin in 2009, when the fledgling Nampa-based college had an enrollment of roughly 1,200 students. CWI now serves more than 30,000 students annually in the Boise area. One of the nation’s fastest-growing community colleges, CWI is by far the largest of Idaho’s four two-year schools. It was created after voters in Ada and Canyon counties voted in 2007 to tax themselves for it.

“This chapter in CWI’s history has been written through (Glandon’s) efforts to advance the success of our students,” board chairwoman Molly Lenty said.

Glandon is closing out a 50-year career in education and private industry, and four decades in community college administration. He had served as president of Ontario, Oregon-based Treasure Valley Community College from 1981 to 2002, and he headed Arapahoe Community College in Littleton, Colorado, from 2002 to 2009.

CWI will name an interim president during the search for a successor.

“We’ll take the needed time, do our work, do the necessary due diligence to ensure that we are addressing the needs of our students, the many communities we serve and, of course, our faculty and staff as we prepare to select our next president,” Lenty said.

The Idaho Statesman contributed.

This story was originally published February 19, 2021 at 9:49 AM.