The person in charge of all Blinn College campuses is stepping down.
District president Dr. Harold Nolte announced his retirement Friday, effective the end of January next year.
That will complete more than four years at Blinn and a 35 year career in Texas higher education.
A special meeting of Blinn’s board of trustees will take place Monday afternoon at four in Brenham. The agenda includes an executive session to discuss the district president’s position.
News release courtesy of Blinn College:
Dr. Harold Nolte, Blinn College district president, announced his retirement today effective January 31, 2015.
“I am very proud of what has been accomplished at Blinn and treasure my time here; however, after 35 years in Texas higher education there are opportunities that make this the best time for me to retire,” said Dr. Nolte. “With preparation for our reaffirmation complete, I am confident the College is poised for great success in the future.”
Dr. Nolte began his career at Blinn College in November 2011. Two of his goals at that time were to increase distance education course offerings and expand workforce education. Since his arrival, distance education enrollment has nearly doubled and with the restructuring of the workforce education department, Blinn has experienced an increase in workforce contact hours reported to the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board.
Upon his arrival at Blinn, there were issues with campus safety and decorum. With students being his primary focus, he immediately addressed these issues by implementing a plan to bring in a judicial officer that resulted in a safer and cleaner environment.
“It is a difficult decision to retire because there are many things left to accomplish at Blinn; however, Blinn is fortunate to have many capable and competent administrators to lead the College in the future.”
Dr. Nolte’s most recent accomplishment is a Memorandum of Understanding with Baylor University that will result in guaranteed admission and transfer scholarships to Baylor for Blinn students. This partnership is in addition to the Texas A&M Blinn TEAM program. This type of partnership can be duplicated with other universities to provide students transfer options.
“Dr. Nolte has been a great asset to Blinn College and we appreciate all he has done for the district,” said Douglas Borchardt, Blinn College Board of Trustees President. “We wish him well in his future endeavors.”
Dr. Nolte and his family have enjoyed their time at Blinn College and look forward to continuing their commitment to the community and to higher education. He will be working with the district and the Board of Trustees with the transition to a new District President.