ROCK SPRINGS – Kim Dale is leaving Western Wyoming Community College. Her final day will be July 12, 2024.
The college president read a letter of resignation after an executive session during the college’s board of trustees meeting Thursday night.
“It is an honor and a privilege to serve Western Wyoming Community College for five years as college president,” she wrote in her resignation letter. “I am proud of what we have accomplished to move this college forward and prepare for its future.”
Dale told SweetwaterNOW she and her husband have traveled to and from Fort Collins, Colo., most weekends to support and spend time with her family. She has five grandchildren with a sixth on the way and her mother is 91 years old.
“The college deserves to have a president who can be fully present, and I can no longer make that commitment,” she said. “It is time for Randy and me to head home and Western to recruit a new president.”
Dale was originally hired to head up the college in 2019, coming from Western Nebraska Community College. During the past five years, Dale navigated the college through challenging periods and capitalized on partnerships to enhance the college’s offerings.
The challenges Dale helped navigate include the COVID-19 pandemic and the college’s response to limitations posed by a desire to curb the spread of the virus. Dale’s tenure also saw the first layoffs Western had enacted in its history, cutting 15 positions, and laying off 13 employees to address a $2.4 million budgetary shortfall that came from a decline in student enrollment, impacts from the pandemic, and funding reductions from the state.
Partnerships that have grown during Dale’s tenure have resulted in new opportunities for Western’s students. One of the more recent collaborations between Western and Rocky Mountain Power resulted in the creation of the Powerline Technology Program that started in 2022. During the Thursday meeting, the board approved a request to solicit bids for a health sciences building at the Rock Springs campus, a goal that had been on Dale’s agenda since arriving at Western.
Dale also represented the college through membership in groups such as the Sweetwater Economic Development Coalition. She was recently honored by the Wyoming Economic Development Association for her work in championing economic development in Sweetwater County.
The college received several accolades during her presidency, including being ranked in the top 50 colleges and universities for associates degrees and Best in Workforce Training in Wyoming by Intelligent.com.
“Thank you for your trust and confidence in my leadership; I am grateful for this career opportunity of a lifetime,” Dale concluded in her letter. “I leave this college presidency confident that the college is healthy and prepared for its bright future.”
