Former Kentucky governor candidate among three finalists for KCTCS president job

The Kentucky Community and Technical College System announced the three finalists for the next system president Tuesday, and one of them is Kentucky Commissioner of Agriculture Ryan Quarles.

The president leads KCTCS, overseeing Kentucky’s 16 community and technical colleges. Paul Czarapata left the position in February. Larry Ferguson, president of Ashland Community and Technical College, has been serving as acting president since then.

The three finalists for the position are Quarles, Dean McCurdy, provost and senior vice president for academic affairs at Ivy Tech Community College of Indiana, and Beverly Walker-Griffea, president of Mott Community College in Michigan.

Finalists will visit the system office in Versailles for meetings with the board and college presidents, and forums with faculty and staff. The next president is expected to begin on January 1, according to KCTCS.

“We were overwhelmingly thrilled with candidates received in this search,” said KCTCS Board Chair Barry Martin, “and we are excited to announce these extraordinary finalists.”

Quarles, the only finalist who lives in Kentucky, has a doctorate in higher education and a juris doctor. He ran as a Republican candidate for governor in 2023 and finished second in the primary behind Attorney General Daniel Cameron.

Quarles has been the state’s commissioner of agriculture since 2015.

“I am both humbled and thrilled to advance as a presidential finalist for the KCTCS system, a critical part of Kentucky’s economic development,” Quarles said. “As a former community college student myself, I hope to bring a Kentucky approach towards strengthening our state’s workforce, align programs with employer needs, and provide first-rate life changing opportunities for any and all Kentuckians. I hope to continue my service towards the Commonwealth and look forward to the in-person visit to meet with the KCTCS community.”

McCurdy has been the provost of Ivy Tech in Lawrenceburg, Indiana, since 2022. He’s held several roles in higher education, including associate vice president for instruction at Kalamazoo Valley Community College and a professor of biology at Albion College in Michigan, according to his LinkedIn profile. He has a doctorate in biology, according to his profile.

Walker-Griffea has been the president of Mott Community College since 2014, and was the first female and first African American president of the school. She has also held several roles in higher education, including senior vice president for student services at Montgomery College in Maryland and vice president of student affairs at Thomas Nelson Community College in Virginia, according to Mott Community College. She has a doctorate in child development, according to her LinkedIn profile.

“We know the importance of this position. We know both the obstacles and opportunities that are ahead and we are excited to work with a new president to bring KCTCS into its next chapter for the good of the Commonwealth,” said KCTCS regent and co-chair of the search committee James Lee Stevens.

Reporter Austin Horn contributed to this story.