FAIRMONT – The three finalists for president of Pierpont Community and Technical College boast expertise in cybersecurity, workforce expansion and medical laboratory science, among other professional and academic attributes, the school said.
They are: Gaby Hawat, a principal at Catalyst Partners in Washington, D.C.; Carl Smalls, chief financial officer and vice president of finance and administration at Danville Community College, Danville, Va.; and Michael Waide, who is currently serving as Pierpont’s interim president.
All three hold doctorates in their research fields, search committee chair Anthony Hinton said.
“The search committee has identified exceptional leaders who reflect Pierpont’s mission, values and commitment to students,” he said.
Each will be hosted in public forums March 4 through 6, Hinton said.
He’s hoping those aforementioned students will attend, he said, along with faculty, staffers and people from the community.
“We look forward to thoughtful participation to help select the right leader for Pierpont,” the search chair continued. “The open forums give the opportunity to hear directly from the individuals who could lead Pierpont into its next chapter.”
Hawat’s 35-year career spans higher education, engineering and technology, government relations, global workforce development and public-private partnerships.
At Catalyst Partners, he advises organizations on strategy, cybersecurity, economic development and institutional sustainability.
He has held senior leadership roles at Princess Nourah University in Saudi Arabia, Florida Institute of Technology and nearly 30 years at Valencia College, a community college in Kissimmee, Fla.
Hawat’s doctoral degrees in higher education leadership and engineering are from the Florida Institute of Technology. He has also done executive training at Harvard University.
Smalls has more than three decades of leadership experience across community colleges, public and private universities, and the private sector.
He currently serves as chief finance officer and vice president of finance and administration at Danville Community College, where he leads budgeting, facilities, information technology, grants, capital projects and campus operations.
Smalls was also a CEO and managing director of an investment firm before joining academia.
He holds a doctorate in community college leadership from Kansas State University and an MBA from Atlanta University – with additional executive finance training at Harvard University.
Waide currently is interim president of Pierpont Community and Technical College.
He has a long association with the school, where he previously held roles as provost, vice president of academics, dean and program director, besides being a licensed medical laboratory scientist and teaching professor.
As a Pierpont administrator, he most recently helped guide the school’s Strategic Plan for 2024-26.
Wade is a first-generation Appalachian scholar with a doctorate in educational leadership and graduate degrees in human development and divinity.
Meanwhile, questions for the candidates may be submitted in advance at go.pierpont.edu/open-forum.
Full bios and resumes of the candidates may be found at https://www.pierpont.edu/about/presidential-search/.
Pierpont’s Board of Governors wants to announce the new president next month as well, with a goal of having the leader in place by July 1.
