On Tuesday, April 4, Virginia Community College System’s first new Chancellor in 21 years, Dr. David Doré, kicked off a statewide listening tour. He is visiting all 23 community colleges in his first 36 days in the role. Virginia Western Community College was his second visit on the listening tour, and he spent the afternoon on campus.
He is intent on learning about needs, successes, concerns and ideas to better support the changing needs of the communities the community colleges serve.
During his time at Virginia Western, Dr. Doré:
- met with students, faculty, staff, administrators, community members, industry professionals and stakeholders during listening sessions,
- toured the Horace G. and Ann H. Fralin Center for Science and Health Professions, Maury and Sheila Strauss Family Student Life Center and STEM building, and
- heard about Virginia Western’s recent partnership to create a biotechnology incubator in Roanoke.
In January 2023, the announcement was made by the State Board for Virginia’s community colleges that David Doré would serve as the next Chancellor of the Virginia Community College System. Doré is the tenth person to lead Virginia’s system of 23 community colleges, succeeding Sharon Morrissey, who served as Interim Chancellor since July 2022.
Dr. Doré is in his twenty-seventh year serving community college students in progressively responsible roles, working with students as an instructor, director, department chair, dean, president, and executive vice chancellor. Most recently he served as President of Campuses and Executive Vice Chancellor for Student Experience & Workforce Development at Pima Community College in Tucson, Arizona.
At Pima Community College, Dr. Doré led the planning and implementation of Centers of Excellence focused on the needs of Arizona’s workforce across the district in partnership with business, industry, and the community. In addition to his administrative experience, Dr. Doré has extensive experience as a faculty member, having taught transfer courses, workforce training courses, honors courses, basic skills courses, contract training courses for businesses, and courses for community partners.
Like so many students served by Virginia’s Community Colleges, Dr. Doré was a first-generation college student. Dr. Doré earned his Doctor of Education degree at Pepperdine University, Los Angeles, CA; a Master of Business Administration degree at Georgetown University, Washington, DC; Master of Education at Boston College, Chestnut Hill, MA; Master of Theological Studies (Ethics) at Santa Clara University, Santa Clara, CA; Licentiate of Philosophy in Ethics at Gonzaga University, Spokane, WA; and his Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy at Gannon University, Erie, PA. He was a 2017-18 Presidential Fellow of the Aspen Institute’s College Excellence Program.
“I am honored to be selected to serve this great system, and excited to begin work with the State Board for Community Colleges to implement the forward-thinking vision they have set in alignment with Governor Youngkin and the General Assembly to accelerate the development of a highly-skilled workforce to meet the growing needs of business and industry in Virginia,” said Dr. David Doré.
“This is both a challenging and exciting time for higher education, and I am looking forward to working with the dedicated and innovative faculty, staff, and administrators of the 23 colleges to serve our learners and collaborate across the rich ecosystem of the Commonwealth to ensure economic mobility for all Virginians,” said Dr. David Doré.
The new Chancellor showed this enthusiasm throughout his afternoon at Virginia Western, as he admired campus buildings and asked questions of faculty, staff and students.
