Dr. Kristin Clark named to co-lead CVHEC dual enrollment strategies with Elaine Cash

Dr. Kristin Clark, chancellor-emeritus of West Hills Community College District (WHCCD), has joined the

Central Valley Higher Education Consortium core team as a consultant leading the development of a “Dual Enrollment Guide/Playbook of Best Practices” for Central Valley colleges, especially those serving students in rural areas.

Dr. Benjamin Duran, CVHEC executive director, recently announced the appointment bringing the former chancellor out of retirement seven months after stepping away from her 30-year career in higher education that also included the presidency of West Hills College-Lemoore (now Lemoore College) and service on the CVHEC board of directors.

Dr. Clark will pair up with Elaine Cash, CVHEC grants coordinator and former superintendent of Riverdale Joint Unified School District who last month was named to co-lead CVHEC’s dual enrollment project.

“We are very fortunate that Dr. Clark was available and willing to join us for this very important project,” Duran said. “Her addition to the powerful CVHEC consulting team comprised of retired higher education and K12 leaders will be a benefit to the entire area.”

This week, Duran leads a CVHEC delegation to the  2025 California Dual Enrollment Equity Conference (Feb. 23-26) in Sacramento by the California Alliance of Dual Enrollment PartnershipsCareer Ladders Project, and EdTrust–West.

CVHEC will present its Master’s Upskilling Project and Central Valley Math Bridge Project with College Bridge.

He said the Dual Enrollment Guide/Playbook is one of the priorities that has emerged from the Central Valley Dual Enrollment for Equity and Prosperity Task Force (CVDEEP) that CVHEC formed in 2019 with  representation from the consortium’s 15 community college members in the valley’s 10-county region.

See the full story about Dr. Kristen’s new CVHEC venture in the upcoming March issue of the CVHEC newsletter.

Dr. Clark’s full bio
Elaine Cash bio
Dual Enrollment in the Central Valley, Working Toward a Unified Approach for Equity and Prosperity.”

 

The West Hills Community College District (WHCCD), announced today the retirement of Chancellor Dr. Kristin Clark  effective July 2024. For the past two years, Chancellor Clark has served as chair of the Central Valley Higher Education Consortium Board of Directors, which is made up of the chancellors, presidents and campus directors of 28 institutions of higher education in the region’s nine-county area. She also served on the board during her term as president of West Hills College Lemoore prior to the WHCCD chancellorship. The West Hills Community College District will soon initiate a search for a new chancellor. Dr. Benjamín Durán, CVHEC executive director, issued the following statement.

Dr. Benjamín Durán, CVHEC executive director,  and WHCCD Chancellor Kristin Clark at the Central Valley Higher Education Summit October 19, 2023 where she delivered the welcome address.

UPDATE July 26, 2024: Chancellor Clark honored at farewell reception (see photo gallery below).

STATEMENT

Chancellor Clark: a champion

of higher education for all

We at the Central Valley Higher Education Consortium along with so many others in the region and the state, are experiencing mixed feelings with Chancellor Kristin Clark’s announcement of her retirement effective the end of this academic year.

We are happy for Chancellor Clark as she completes a stellar academic career this spring in preparation for her retirement but at the same time we are saddened that the Central Valley region is losing a leader of her caliber.   As the chair of the 28-member CVHEC Board of Directors the last two years, Chancellor Clark has been a champion of higher education for all and certainly for the initiatives and projects the Consortium has undertaken. She has been instrumental in building our network of Central Valley college and university leaders to speak in a single voice on higher education policy issues.

Additionally, Chancellor Clark is recognized throughout the state as the leader of one of the most innovative and student-centered multi-college districts in rural California.  The West Hills Community College District and the communities it serves have been fortunate to receive her professional and personal leadership.

Please join us in wishing Dr. Clark all the best, as she gets ready to explore the next phase of her life. Well done, Kristin!

Benjamín Durán, Ed.D.
Executive Director – The Central Valley Higher Education Consortium  
President-emeritus – Merced College

See the WHCCD  retirement  announcement press release.

Bio – Chancellor Kristin Clark

Chancellor Clark Farewell Reception – CVHEC photo gallery: