ESCANABA & IRON MOUNTAIN, Mich. (WZMQ) – The president of Bay College has been elected to the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) Board of Directors.
The AACC provides advocacy, support, and leadership for nearly 1,200 two-year institutions, including Bay College. Bay’s President, Dr. Nerita Hughes, joins a board of 32 members dedicated to guiding the association’s vision and maintaining accountability to those community colleges.
“The beauty about this is that there were 19 of us on the ballot for only six seats, so it’s an honor to get elected,” Dr. Hughes said. “It’s really exciting for me because AACC has a new CEO, Dr. DeRionne Pollard, so to work alongside her and with the other members that are on the board, it really is a blessing.”
Hughes says one of her goals is to be a strong representative of Bay College, its students, and the Upper Peninsula.
“AACC is kind of the conduit, if you will, to pull the colleges together when you think about federal mandates that are coming, anything with workforce, economic development, completion, persistence, and retention,” she said. “This is an opportunity for us to really make sure that as decisions are being made, as we’re looking at public, two-year institutions that really impact our students, then I’m able to bring my voice as a community college president from a rural college.”
Dr. Hughes’ three-year term on the board will begin on July 1. In July of 2025, Governor Gretchen Whitmer appointed Hughes to the Michigan Workforce Development Board. Hughes is completing her current term as a commissioner for the structured pathways with AACC, which will conclude June 30, 2026.
