Kherz’den Humphrey
Editor-In-Chief
Dr. Katricia Pierson has been named Crowder’s newest president. The decision was made December 13 during a board meeting after months of narrowing down finalists. Pierson began her transition into office on January 13 and is working on getting to know the college community.
Prior to her Crowder presidency, Pierson has an extensive background in education and community leadership. In 2018, Pierson was recognized in “50 Women Making a Difference in Oklahoma” by Journal Record’s Women of the Year program. She is also a part of Rotary International, where she shares their mission of service, goodwill, integrity and peace.
She has over 15 years’ experience in English Literature and Composition, and has three degrees to show for it. A Bachelor’s in Journalism and English Secondary Education, and her Master’s and Doctorate in English. As well as the previous title of Professor of English and Languages at ECU’s Liberal Arts and Social Sciences.
Pierson has held a role in many different boards, division chairs and committees. She was the chair for Ada Jobs Foundation Board and Ada Chamber of Commerce, a division chair for Sciences and Humanities, on the Steering committee of Missouri Department of Higher Education’s Curriculum Alignment and Assessment Initiative and even the co-chair of English Discipline Subcommittee for the Curriculum Alignment Initiative.
In 2017, Pierson was named not only the 9th president of East Central University (ECU) but also the first woman president. As president she has accomplished many things; a new residence hall, numerous grants and academic programs, established a retention office (which later became a student success center), made the change from paper to an online enrollment process and much more.
In coming to Crowder, Pierson has many hopes and dreams for her time as president. Although before she begins making any changes, she wants to get to know the college and learn about the cultures and uniqueness each campus offers. One thing is certain, she has high expectations for what Crowder is capable of, and intends to prove it to everyone else.
“Crowder is much more complex than ECU. With the distant sites, each one has its own culture, spirit, community and leadership. I believe the president must be involved in those.” Pierson is working on learning about the different extensive programs Crowder offers such as Vet Tech and Transport Training.
In an article by Joe Hadsall in the Joplin Globe, Pierson goes into slight detail about some of her plans for Crowder. One of her dreams being to boost and expand enrollment and gaining international attention for its innovation. She wants to bring Crowder back to its former national prominence for engineering and innovation and interaction in global commerce.
“I’ve talked to people who knew about Crowder from a feature in National Geographic on solar homes. I want to be back in National Geographic, back in science magazines.” Pierson elaborates on plans of innovation. Pierson doesn’t just have the hopes of getting back to this level of recognition; she knows Crowder can get there. “We have the ability to be there.”
To adapt and adjust to Crowder, Pierson had various faculty and community members answer a set of questions in order to learn what she needed to do to be the best president. She currently has a full schedule of visiting the different campuses, going out and meeting community members and even wandering the halls of Crowder to meet students and faculty.
“I try to be where I’m needed,” Pierson states.
One concern that Pierson has for Crowder is making sure that programs are being marketed to a wider range of people and making sure that programs are being offered to those who cannot be on campus Monday-Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.. “I want to provide an education that meets their schedule. We have to adjust and be ready for it.” Pierson believes that Crowder needs to adapt to the “anytime, anyplace” services that younger generations are used to.
“We can’t be a vinyl record in a digital world.”
Already Pierson has a couple goals for Crowder. On top of working on the college’s innovation, she wants to stabilize enrollment. “I want to make sure we retain students and get them to completion, or to help them come back and finish what they started.” Pierson explains. She doesn’t have any set lists of what they’re going to do just yet, it takes time to gather all the data she needs.
“There are things like robotics that we need to look at, also healthcare. We’re starting surgical tech in fall ‘22.” Pierson states. She has ideas for anything that has to do with sustainability that’s going to be part of the future. “Recycling, alternative energy and robotics, also possibly bringing supply chain management and moving products from manufacturer to shipping.”
As president of Crowder, something Pierson is looking forward to the most is the people. “I look forward to seeing the students graduate, and meeting alumni. You can get there from here. It energizes me just thinking about it. I look forward to seeing where our students go.” Pierson is excited to be president, she is looking forward to the coming years and learning everything there is to know about Crowder.
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