Green named President of Georgia Highlands College

Green Named President of Georgia Highlands College

Atlanta — June 6, 2014

ATLANTA – (June 6) – Dr. Donald J. Green, vice president for Extended and International Operations, Ferris State University, Big Rapids, Mich. has been named as the next president of Georgia Highlands College in Rome by the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia.

Green will assume his new post on Sept. 8, 2014, according to Board of Regents Chair Philip Wilheit, Sr. “Georgia Highlands serves an important area of Georgia with multiple campuses and Dr. Green’s experience in Michigan made him the ideal choice for this presidency,” said Wilheit. “We are excited about his coming to Georgia.”

University System of Georgia (USG) Chancellor Hank Huckaby said, “I am impressed by Dr. Green’s track record in providing leadership across a region and many campuses and his focus on student success, recruitment, diversity and economic development. He will be a great asset to Georgia Highlands and the University System.”

Green has served as both Vice Chancellor and Vice President at Ferris State, leading a number of administrative units. Ferris State is comprised of its Big Rapids main campus and 19 satellite locations throughout Michigan.

In his current position, Green has more than doubled the number of community college-based campus locations, from 9 to 19 over the past five years and achieved an annual enrollment growth rate average of more than eight percent per year for his division.

He developed an outreach campaign to the Hispanic community and enrollment of this growing population has increased from 14 to 18 percent over the last four years.

His higher education career also includes administrative and teaching posts at Grand Rapids Community College, Grand Rapids, Mich., and Davenport University, Grand Rapids, Mich. Green also operated a consulting firm, D. Green and Associates.

Green holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Michigan State University, East Lansing, Mich., a master’s degree in labor and human resource management from Ohio State University, Columbus and an Ed.D. in educational leadership from Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, Mich.

He serves on the Prima Civitas Foundation Board of Trustees, a group that promotes Michigan as a competitive and innovation state and on the board of the World Literacy Foundation as chairman of the organization’s North America branch. He also serves as a board member of the West Michigan Hispanic Center.