(Richmond) – A lot of parents tell their children about the importance of education, but it was more than just talk in the home in which Mark R. Graham was raised. “I grew up in a family of educators,” said Graham. “Dad was the superintendent of Wise County public schools. I knew that was something I wanted to try.”
When the opportunity came, Graham seized it. Fresh out of law school, he went to work at Virginia Highlands Community College as an adjunct faculty member, teaching paralegal classes at night for eight years.
Beginning July 1, Graham, of Abingdon, will begin using that experience, and a lot he has gained since, to serve as the chairman of the State Board for Community Colleges. “It’s an honor to be selected by your peers for this role,” he said. “And I think it’s an honor for the region. It’s not often you find people from far western Virginia chairing a state board, especially one that is creating so many opportunities for the folks of this region.”
Broadening perspectives seems to be the theme that Graham is adopting for his year as chairman. “I want to emphasize international education components to really give students some exposure to different cultures.” Graham learned the value of that exposure first-hand when, as the president of the local rotary club, he hosted a high school student from Bolivia for a semester.
“I learned so much from him and he learned so much from us. The global economy is here. And if we’re going to prepare people to work in that economy and perhaps start their own business in that economy, we need to help them experience the ways of the larger world.”
That emphasis will come along with finding solutions to the challenges of a growing, thriving network of community colleges. “Funding always is and always will be a challenge, especially with growing enrollment,” said Graham. “And in many places we are serving those students in buildings that are forty years old – buildings that don’t fix themselves. Maintaining those structures is a challenge, just as it is to update them with the technology many of our programs require.
“Growth-related challenges are good challenges to have though. Virginia community colleges are a great value for the money and more and more people are seeing that.”
Graham will become the 32nd person to chair the State Board for Community Colleges. And according to his predecessor, Graham is ready to take on the position. “Mark is going to be an outstanding chairman,” said Alan G. Toxopeus of Winchester, the board’s outgoing chairman. “He believes in the community college mission. He’s exciting to work with and I hope he enjoys the honor as much as I have.”
“In the five years that I’ve worked with him, I have found Mark to be a smart and committed leader,” said Glenn DuBois, chancellor of Virginia’s Community Colleges. “He has played a big role in setting the course for our system and I think he’s going to be a great chairman.”
Also taking a new role on the board is Robert W. Shinn of Richmond. On July 1, he becomes vice chairman of the board, a position currently held by Graham.
About Virginia’s Community Colleges: Created more than 40 years ago, the VCCS is comprised of 23 community colleges located on 40 campuses across the commonwealth. Together, Virginia’s Community Colleges serve more than a quarter-million credit students each year. For more information, please visit myfuture.vccs.edu.
About the State Board for Community Colleges: The State Board for Community Colleges is the governing body of the Virginia Community College System. Appointed by the Governor for up to two four-year terms, the board’s 15 members meet six times a year to set policy for all of Virginia’s community colleges. For more information, please visit the State Board page on our website.
About Mark R. Graham: Mr. Graham, the director in the law firm of Boucher, Hutton & Graham, was appointed to the State Board by Governor Mark Warner in March of 2002 to fill an unexpired term. He was appointed by Governor Warner for a four-year term in July of 2002 and reappointed by Governor Tim Kaine for a second four-year term in July of 2006. For more information, please visit Mr. Graham's profile on our website.