Montcalm Community College is “Celebrating Our Past, Creating Our Future” during the inauguration of the college’s fifth president, Robert C. Ferrentino, J.D.
The MCC Board of Trustees formally inducts Ferrentino during a ceremony at 2 p.m. Nov. 6 in MCC’s gymnasium, located in the Activities Building on the college’s Sidney campus. A reception follows from 3 to 5 p.m. in rooms D303-305 in MCC’s Beatrice E. Doser Building. The public is invited.
Ferrentino joined MCC on July 1, 2009, as the institution’s fifth president. He succeeds Donald C. Burns, who served as the college’s president for the last 25 years.
Ferrentino has more than 25 years of community college experience. He most recently served Muskegon Community College for 13 years, where he was Vice President for Academic Affairs from 2004 to 2009 and Dean of Occupational Programs from 1996 to 2003.
“MCC is a natural fit for me,” said Ferrentino, who recently moved to Greenville with his family. “I am enjoying becoming part of the community and getting to know people here.”
At MCC, Ferrentino is working on several projects including a strategic plan to guide the college in its future endeavors.
“There are many points of pride at MCC,” Ferrentino said. “We consistently hear positive feedback about the quality of instruction. We also realize that we need to continue to do more in the area of student success, and we are focusing on this initiative as part of our continuous quality improvement process.”
MCC Board of Trustees Chairperson Karen Carbonelli said she is pleased with Ferrentino’s accomplishments during his first three months.
“As a board, we felt that Bob’s varied background would be a benefit to the college, and that is proving to be true,” Carbonelli said. “We are very happy to have him on board. He has really hit the ground running and seems to be very comfortable as he continues to become acquainted with MCC and with the people in the communities that we serve.”
From 1980 to 1996, Ferrentino was employed with Lansing Community College. He served as Director of Marketing Services from 1993 to 1996, as an Instructor and Program Director from 1988 to 1993 and as an Adjunct Instructor from 1980 to 1988. Prior to his career in higher education, he also practiced law, worked at Ford Motor Company and served as Director of Marketing with American Collegiate Marketing Inc. in Lansing.
In 1984, Ferrentino earned his Juris Doctor from the Thomas M. Cooley Law School in Lansing. He earned a master’s degree in Business Administration from Northern Illinois University in DeKalb, Ill., in 1977 and a bachelor’s degree in Marketing from Northern Illinois University in 1976. He has also completed advanced management training through the Academic Leadership Program at Cornell University and he completed The League for Innovation in Community Colleges’ Executive Leadership Institute training for aspiring presidents. Ferrentino has participated in several community leadership development training programs and he was a teacher in the Japan Adventure program in Otsu, Japan.
Ferrentino is a member of the Greenville Rotary Club, the Coalition of Greater Greenville (COGG), the Montcalm Human Services Coalition and Leadership Montcalm, and he serves as a coach with Greenville’s youth soccer program. In addition, he is a past president of the Michigan Occupational Deans Administrative Council and of the Montague Whitehall Rotary Club, a former chairman of the Volunteer Muskegon Board of Directors, and a former member of the Michigan Liberal Arts Deans Association, the Michigan Community College Chief Academic Officers Association and the National Council for Workforce Education.
He and his wife, Ronda, reside in Greenville. They have five children, Joe Ferrentino, Katie Ferrentino, Chris Hanes, Taylor Gorecki and Amanda Gorecki.
On Nov. 6, services at MCC’s Sidney campus are not available between 1:30 and 3:30 p.m. In addition, services are not available at MCC’s M-TEC in Greenville, at its Panhandle Area Center in Howard City or at its Ionia Center between 1 and 4:30 p.m. so that MCC’s employees may attend Ferrentino’s inauguration.