Home » KCTCS Board of Regents recommends Jay K. Box as new president

KCTCS Board of Regents recommends Jay K. Box as new president

Box has been chancellor since 2009

VERSAILLES, Ky. (Nov. 12, 2014) — Kentucky Community and Technical College System (KCTCS) Board of Regents Chair P.G. Peeples, Sr. announced today that Jay K. Box, Ed.D. has been named the preferred candidate in the search for the next KCTCS President.

Dr. Jay Box is the current KCTCS chancellor, a position he has held since July 1, 2009. As chancellor, he provides systemwide leadership for academic affairs, economic development, workforce training, and research and policy analysis.

Dr. Jay Box
Dr. Jay Box

The KCTCS Board of Regents determined the preferred candidate with a unanimous vote during a special board meeting held Nov. 11 at the Kentucky Chamber of Commerce in Frankfort. The 19-member presidential search committee, co-chaired by Peeples and former KCTCS Board of Regents member and secretary of the Education and Workforce Development Cabinet, Thomas O. Zawacki, began reviewing candidate materials in August.

“After an extensive national search we are pleased to have identified a candidate who matches the presidential profile developed in collaboration with our search consultant, search committee, board, faculty, staff and student representatives,” Peeples said. “Dr. Box has played a key role in shaping the learning opportunities KCTCS provides and he has demonstrated strong leadership and dedication to our students, faculty and staff.”

A KCTCS forum will be held at the System Office in Versailles at 11 a.m. on Nov. 18. KCTCS college presidents, faculty, staff and students are invited to attend and will have an opportunity to hear from Dr. Box and ask questions on his vision for KCTCS. Participants will be asked to complete an online survey to submit feedback to the board.

The KCTCS Board of Regents will hold a special board meeting at 10 a.m. on Nov. 19 to review feedback on the preferred candidate and to approve the final contract for the next KCTCS president.

The new president of KCTCS will begin service effective Jan. 16, 2015, following the retirement of KCTCS founding president Dr. Michael B. McCall.

While serving as chancellor, Dr. Box chaired the statewide committee that developed the Kentucky Transfer Action Plan. The plan eliminates barriers for community college students transferring to the state’s eight public universities by using student learning outcomes to align curriculum.

In 2011, Dr. Box led an initiative to evaluate and revise the KCTCS dual credit program. The initiative culminated in a statewide dual credit agreement between KCTCS, the Kentucky Department of Education, and the Office of Career and Technical Education.

Currently, Dr. Box serves as the state lead for the Accelerating Opportunity Kentucky initiative, a partnership between KCTCS, Kentucky Adult Education, and the Kentucky Education and Workforce Development Cabinet to provide contextualized basic skills and technical training with the expected outcome of students earning credentials that lead to high wage, high demand careers.

Dr. Box continues to lead the development of KCTCS Online—Learn on Demand, an award-winning, nationally recognized, revolutionary method of delivering higher education online in a 24/7, modular, competency-based format.

Dr. Box serves on numerous state and national advisory councils including the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation’s National Advisory Group on Financial Aid, the American Association of Community College’s (AACC) Sustainability Education and Economic Development Task Force, the Southern Regional Education Board’s Commission on Career and Technical Education and the Aspen Institute’s Innovation in Higher Education Working Group

Dr. Box has a history of leadership with KCTCS having served as the president of Hazard Community and Technical College (HCTC) from 2002–2007, followed by being named as KCTCS vice president with the primary responsibility of providing leadership to administrative systems, network operations, distance learning technologies and visualized learning and innovation. Prior to coming to KCTCS he served as a vice president at McLennan Community College in Waco, Texas.

Dr. Box received an associate degree from Howard College, a bachelor’s degree in education from Southwest Texas State University in 1976, a master’s degree in education from Texas Tech University in 1985 and a doctorate degree in educational administration, higher education/community college specialty from Baylor University in 1994.

Dr. Box is a native of Crane, Texas. He is married to Gayle Box. They have one son.