Don’t expect any monumental changes at Chattanooga State Community College — at least not for a few months.
Interim college President Fannie Hewlett says her role isn’t one of a change agent. Rather, she’s hoping to subtly lay a foundation for the college’s permanent president, who should take over sometime in the summer.
Hewlett, a longtime Chattanooga State professor and administrator who retired in June 2014, took the reins following the departure of Jim Catanzaro, who led the college for a quarter-century. He left amid an outcry over his hiring practices, specifically the hiring of Chief Innovations Officer Lisa Haynes. Catanzaro recruited her from Barbados for a top campus position, though she didn’t have a required bachelor’s degree.
In a special audit, the Tennessee Board of Regents, which oversees the state’s community colleges, found that Catanzaro created a mock hiring process in defiance of rules designed to ensure fair, open hiring. Haynes was later fired and Human Resources Director Tom Krum stepped down.
While the scandal opened the floodgates for dozens of faculty complaints over Catanzaro’s leadership, Hewlett said she doesn’t plan on taking on any big projects or pursuing any big organizational changes.