SWIC board picks Mance as president
BELLEVILLE - Southwestern Illinois College District 522 recently appointed Nick Mance as its new college president.
Mance has 25 years of service in community college leadership as a SWIC trustee from 1993-2018, including two decades as chairman of the SWIC board of trustees, before recently resigning in order to participate in the college president selection process as a candidate.
He was one of the creators of the Academic Quality Improvement Program at SWIC in 2001, which became a pilot for the Higher Learning Commission's Vital Focus program in 2002.
A certified public accountant, Mance's professional career spans over 30 years of senior business management and leadership positions, including accounting and auditing at a major international SEC corporation, partnership at a public accounting firm, and serving as Chief Financial Officer of a private manufacturer and a large public elementary and secondary school district.
"I am honored and humbled to be chosen as the next President of Southwestern Illinois College," Mance said. "I look forward to working with the outstanding faculty, staff, students and other community stakeholders to continue building SWIC's excellent academic programs and services."
The SWIC board of trustees selected Mance during a special meeting after publicly announcing and advertising the vacancy in the position, accepting applications and conducting interviews of all candidates.
"SWIC, like many Illinois community colleges, faces ongoing challenges concerning financial stability and enrollment decline," said board vice chairman Richard Roehrkasse. "The board determined that these exceptional circumstances warrant a nontraditional approach.
"Mr. Mance's financial experience and educational insight make him uniquely qualified to lead SWIC's daily operations during these trying times," Roehrkasse added. "His vision and focus for SWIC are consistent with our longtime strategic goal of increasing student enrollment and retention by developing and offering innovative programs and services for our community."