news-record.com

The next president of Greensboro College faces several monumental tasks: restoring financial stability, improving the aging campus, restoring confidence of faculty and staff, and ensuring the school's survival for years to come.

But before the permanent president arrives -- probably by July 1 at the latest -- an interim president will start to do much of this heavy listing. C. Brent DeVore, the interim president introduced Friday, has the knowledge and experience to lay a solid foundation for Greensboro College's next leader.

DeVore is an energetic 68-year-old with four decades of experience in higher education. He was president of Otterbein College, a small Ohio liberal arts school, for a remarkable 25 years until he retired two months ago. Before that, he was president at Davis & Elkin College in West Virginia.

While at Otterbein, DeVore helped double enrollment to 3,200 students. The school's endowment grew from $6 million to $100 million. The percentage of faculty with doctorates doubled, more students stayed around to get their degrees and the college got national recognition for its service to the community. No wonder Greensboro's trustees were interested in having DeVore interrupt his retirement plans.

In Greensboro, DeVore finds himself in a familiar setting. That's because Otterbein is in many ways a larger cousin to Greensboro College. Both schools are affiliated with the Methodist church. Both focus primarily on undergraduates. Both are in urban settings -- Otterbein is in a suburb of Columbus, Ohio. And both share their turf with much larger public universities -- Otterbein lives in the long shadow of The Ohio State University, while Greensboro is home to both N.C. A&T and UNCG.

During his brief tenure at Greensboro, DeVore plans to listen to what's on the minds of faculty, students, alumni and other interested parties. He wants to determine the college's core strengths. And he wants to help the college find its niche in the higher education world to help it attract and retain good students and professors.

DeVore has plenty of hard work ahead. His track record and experience should make him a welcome addition to Greensboro College.