A new president has been appointed to lead Southern Maine Community College in South Portland.
The Maine Community College System’s board of trustees has confirmed Kristen Miller to lead the institution based on the recommendation of the system’s president, David Daigler, according to Noel Gallagher, a spokesperson.
Miller will start the job in February, Gallagher said Friday morning.
Daigler called Miller “an outstanding choice” to lead Southern Maine Community College, saying she has proven herself as an “innovative” administrator and instructor.
Miller most recently served as vice president of academic affairs at White Mountains Community College in Berlin, New Hampshire, where she has worked since 2014. She also has worked as the school’s associate vice president of academic affairs and an admissions counselor.
She also has worked as a lecturer at Plymouth State University in New Hampshire since 2020, and before that Miller was an adjunct English professor at White Mountain Community College and an English teacher at Kennett High School in North Conway, New Hampshire.
Miller has a doctorate in higher education leadership from Capella University in Minneapolis, Minnesota; a master’s degree in education and education leadership from the University of New England in Biddeford; and a bachelor’s degree in communications and English from Sonoma State University in Rohnert Park, California.
Miller also serves on the board of trustees for Starting Point Services for Victims of Domestic and Sexual Violence, and on the board of directors for New Hampshire’s Jobs for America’s Graduates. She is also a member of the Educational Justice Institute of New England Board of Higher Education, and the Mount Washington Valley Career and Technical Center advisory board, according to the community college system.
“It is an honor and a privilege to join this remarkable institution, and I am truly humbled by the trust placed in me by President Daigler and the Board of Trustees,” Miller said in a statement. “I want to express my deepest appreciation to all those involved in this selection process. Your confidence in my abilities is both inspiring and motivating. I assure you that I am fully committed to upholding the values of academic excellence, inclusivity, and innovation that define this college.”
Miller was selected from more than 50 candidates following a national search. She succeeds Joe Cassidy, who left in August 2023 to become president of Saint Joseph’s College in Standish. Tiffanie Bentley, the community college’s dean of administration, has served as interim president.
“I am very pleased to welcome Kristen Miller as the new president of Southern Maine Community College,” said Joyce Maker, the chair of the community college system’s board of trustees. “She embodies the core values and goals that have brought so much success to SMCC, making her an excellent choice to lead SMCC now and into the future.”
Southern Maine Community College is the oldest of the system’s seven campuses. It serves more than 6,000 students at its South Portland campus and satellites in Portland and Brunswick.