CRANFORD – Union County College President Margaret M. McMenamin was elected to be a commissioner for the Middle States Commission on Higher Education. McMenamin’s three-year term will begin on Jan. 1, and run through the end of 2016.
As a commissioner, McMenamin will participate on a 26-member board that oversees accreditation and pre-accreditation activities for colleges and universities in New Jersey, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and other territories.
Middle States elects commissioners from among 526 member institutions. As an elected commissioner, McMenamin will attend commission meetings and serve on task forces and committees. The Commission’s key committees include the Executive Committee, Committee on Evaluation Reports, Committee on Periodic Review Reports, Committee on Follow-Up Activities/Candidate Institutions, Substantive Change Committee, Committee on Membership, and Finance Committee.
Union County College Board of Trustees Chair Victor Richel informed the College’s Board members of McMenamin’s election during the Board’s Oct. 22 meeting. “We are tremendously proud that the Middle States Commission has recognized Union County College President McMenamin for this honor,” said Richel. “Her election as a commissioner is a testament to her skills as our president and as a regional leader in community-college education. No doubt Middle States will be as pleased with her work on the Commission as we have been these past three years in her service as Union County College president.”
McMenamin’s experience with Middle States included her having served as a Middle States site visitor in 1998, 2008, and Team Chair in 2012. As the Union County College president, McMenamin oversaw the submission of a Periodic Review Report that earned a Middle States commendation in 2012. Her other prior experience includes leading Brookdale Community College to reaccreditation in 2008.