“We are doing great things here.” That’s the word from Liang Chee Wee, the newly appointed interim chancellor for Eastern Iowa Community Colleges.
Mr. Wee was unanimously appointed to the position Thursday afternoon, Sept. 28, during a special meeting of the EICC Board of Trustees at the Scott Community College Urban Campus in downtown Davenport.
His contract as interim chancellor will run from Oct. 1 to June 30, 2025.
“This college is operating from a position of strength. … Together, I know we can do even greater things,” Mr. Wee told a crowd of about 25 people during Thursday’s 15-minute board meeting.
He added that he looks forward to working with EICC’s business and education partners in the community. He wants EICC to continue to work with those partners and make improvements to provide more and better services to the community.
“We contribute to the vitality of the community. We lift everybody. … We can improve lives,” the interim chancellor said.
Mr. Wee was named interim leader after the resignation of Sonya J. Williams from the permanent chancellor post. Ms. Williams started her role as chancellor on Aug. 8, 2022, and resigned on Aug. 1 for “personal reasons,” according to EICC officials.
When her resignation was accepted, Naomi DeWinter, Muscatine Community College president and vice chancellor for student development, was named temporary acting chancellor of EICC. On Thursday Ms. DeWinter was praised and thanked for her work. The EICC Board of Trustees presented her with a framed resolution to officially thank her for leading EICC for the past several weeks.
Meanwhile, the new interim chancellor will likely be on the job until his contract expires on June 30, 2025. Mr. Wee told the QCBJ that at this point he is not considering staying on as chancellor after that date. Instead, he wants to concentrate on making EICC a welcoming school to all people in the community.
After Thursday’s meeting, EICC Board of Trustees President Bob Gallagher said the board wants the new interim chancellor in place until the summer of 2025 for two reasons:
- First, it will give the board time to conduct an extensive and national search for a new chancellor.
- Second, the board wanted a leader in place for an academic accreditation process for EICC that will take place in October of 2024.
“We want to have stability here for that process,” Mr. Gallagher said.
After that accreditation is complete next fall, EICC expects to get “heavily into the process” of searching for a new chancellor, he added.
“With an extensive background in community college leadership and steadfast commitment to excellence, Dr. Wee is ready to lead EICC,” Mr. Gallagher said in a news release from EICC.
Mr. Wee is an experienced figure in higher education who comes to EICC with 35 years of experience changing lives and building communities. He most recently served as president of Northeast Iowa Community College. It serves eight counties and operates campuses in Calamar and Peosta, and service centers across the district.
He retired in 2022 after serving in the top leadership role for 11 years, during which the college celebrated a successful $10 million capital campaign and the passage of a $39 million bond referendum.
Prior to that appointment, Mr. Wee served four years as provost of NICC’s Calamar campus.
During his tenure, he focused on establishing partnerships dedicated to expanding educational access for learners of all backgrounds, promoting economic growth for businesses, and boosting community vitality in northeastern Iowa, according to information from EICC.
Mr. Wee arrived in the U.S. on July 4, 1983, after serving in the Singapore Armed Forces. He grew up in a rural village in Singapore. “My mom never went to school because her family was poor. My father completed the equivalent of high school and had to work to support the family. But both ensured that their two sons would receive more education than they did,” he said in a news release.
“We were first-generation students and I identify with those students served by community colleges. Everyone deserves an opportunity. Everyone has abilities. We do life together.”
Mr. Wee attended the University of Arizona, earning a Ph.D. and an MBA in business administration from the Karl Eller Graduate School of Management, and a bachelor of science and bachelor of arts in management information systems.
He moved to Iowa in 1992 to work at Luther College. In his 15 years with the college, he held many successive roles including professor, department chair, registrar and associate dean, according to information from EICC.
He has authored and published 23 peer reviewed papers; frequently serves as a keynote speaker, presenter, panelist and facilitator at various events; and has been recognized with many professional awards and honors for his leadership. He currently serves on the board for MercyOne, Freedom Bank, and is resident president for the Iowa Community College Leadership Institute, hosted by the Community College Leadership Consortium, Iowa State University.
“I look forward to collaborating with our EICC colleagues and friends to continue to improve lives, support our business and K-12 partners and contribute to the vitality of our communities,” Mr. Wee said in a news release.
