SCCC President Mazur resigns
NEWTON — In a letter to Lorraine Parker, the chair of the Sussex County Community College's Board of Trustees, College President Paul Mazur, D.P.A., announced that he will formally resign his position as of June 30, 2015, according to a college news release.
The resignation, dated Feb. 14, notes that Mazur, along with his staff, faculty and executive team have accomplished much of what he had set out to do.
Some of the accomplishments noted in his letter include the stabilization of the college's finances and reaffirmation of the college's accreditation by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, the development of two new programs in Horticulture and Agriculture Business, which was facilitated by the single largest major gift received by the college.
Also noted was the college's renewed focus on serving students with a full time Veterans Affairs Office, security upgrades and a Learner Assessment Outcomes program.
“Dr. Paul Mazur has maintained a steady hand over the past four, challenging years and has recently brought the College successfully through its most recent crisis," Parker said, according to a press release from the college on the resignation. "We will miss Paul when he leaves and we will certainly move ahead on many projects that he initiated.”
Speaking by phone on Wednesday, Parker said that "Paul Mazur dragged the college into the 21st century. He has brought a real vision" to the school.
She cited technological upgrades to the school's information technology department and advancing its online courses.
Parker also identified new partnerships the college has made with four-year institutions.
The college has also recently expanded its articulation agreements with other colleges in the state to allow students to transfer credits they earn at the community college to more four-year institutions.
The past year has been tumultuous for the college, with two trustees resigning from the board over conflicts of interest relating to CP Engineers, the firm awarded more than $800,000 worth of contracts at the college.
The college hired two law firms to review its handling of a $2.88 million contract award to Echelon Services for a renovation project of its student center. Echelon Services was the lone bidder but there was no fault found by the trustees in their handling of the bid process.
In September, the Board of Trustees approved a two-year contract for Mazur at a salary of $171,899.
Last month, the board rejected a proposal brought forth by a subcommittee of the board and negotiated by the college's administration to hire a new law firm at a rate of $375 an hour along with a retainer fee of $18,000 more than the current firm's rate.
Over the last three years, 28 positions were eliminated at the college.
Going forward, Parker said she will appoint a search committee of board members on Monday to find a replacement for Mazur. The committee will be tasked with hiring a consulting firm to find candidates and vet them.
A committee of community members will review the finalists, Parker said. Speaking by phone on Thursday afternoon, Mazue said "being a wise man is knowing when it's time to go." He said he was proud of more than $2 million in technology grants the college received from the state. He cited an increased collaboration with Sussex Technical School and the college's work in getting accredited as achievements. The college's finances are "in a much better place than when I started," he said. Mazur previously worked in the administration at SUNY Adirondack and was a professor of public administration at a Minnesota community college. He spent 20 years in Minnesota. He plans to "decompress" after his term at SCCC is up. He plans to return to teaching as an adjunct professor, though he does not know where at this time. "The community colleges have been a cause for me," Mazur said.