Louisiana Community College Leader
Accepts UT-Austin Teaching Position
Bumphus recognized for diversifying leadership ranks.
By Scott Dyer
Baton Rouge, La.
Dr. Walter G. Bumphus, who has served as president of Louisiana’s fledgling Community and Technical College System for the past five years, is stepping down to accept a teaching job at the University of Texas at Austin.
Bumphus guided the seven-year-old Louisiana system through the devastation caused by hurricanes Katrina and Rita last year, but he says the system has recovered to the point that his Jan. 15 departure should cause minimal disruption.
In all, 21,305 students, or about 40 percent of LCTCS’s total enrollment, were displaced by Hurricane Katrina.
“There’s no way that I could have left right after Katrina, but I believe that things are on an upswing in the system and are back to some degree of normalcy in the New Orleans area,” he says.
Bumphus announced last month that he had accepted a tenured professorship at the University of Texas at Austin’s department of educational administration, with an endowed chair in the community college leadership program.
“It’s really a dream job. I didn’t seek it. As a matter of fact, I wasn’t seeking any job. They aggressively recruited me,” says Bumphus, who earned his doctorate at UT.
Since his hiring at LCTCS, Bumphus has made significant strides in promoting diversity in major leadership posts.
When he first came to the system, all but one of its seven chancellors were White men. Under Bumphus’ guidance, the board has since hired three female chancellors, two of whom are Black. In addition, Dr. Alex Johnson was hired as chancellor of Delgado Community College in New Orleans.
© Copyright 2005 by DiverseEducation.com
