Mary Spilde

Hired at Linn–Benton Community College in 1980, Spilde worked 15 years teaching and in vice presidential roles.[10] She first worked as coordinator of the RISE program (Reach Independence and Security through Education) in Albany, a federally funded program through CETA (the Comprehensive Employment and Training Act). The program served homemakers without jobs, and also offered help to men on parole from prison to learn new skills to enter the job market. CETA funds were cut by 60% in 1981.[11] The following year, anticipating another 22 percent cut, the funding agency decided the Albany RISE office must close.[12]

In 1982, Spilde was hired as director of the Albany Community Education Center at Linn–Benton Community College.[13] The following year, the program was expanded to "help new and existing industries attract and train qualified employees", becoming the Center for Training and Economic Development, the "TED Center".[14][15] In 1984, Spilde was selected to participate in the "Leaders for the 80s" program sponsored by the League for Innovation in Community Colleges and the American Association of Women in Community and Junior Colleges.[16] The General Federation of Women's Clubs named her "Oregon's Outstanding Young Woman of 1984".[17] She was also listed in the publication, Outstanding Young Women of America, honoring women "between 21 and 36 years old for their civic and professional achievements".[18][19] In 1988, Spilde was appointed executive assistant to the college president,[20] and she also continued as director of Community Education activities for all of Benton County.[21] By 1991, her position was dean of business, training and health occupations.[22]

Spilde's 22-year career at Lane included 16 years as president.[7] She joined Lane Community College in 1995 as vice president for instructional services, and then served as vice president for instruction and student services.[7] She was appointed president of the college, beginning August 15, 2001, the first woman to hold that office at Lane.[23]

Less than a month after Spilde became president, the college observed the nationwide Day of Remembrance, commemorating the September 11 attacks.[24] The ensuing weak national economy led to budget cuts at the college. Spilde recalled, "It was February 22, 2002, and I went around and told 122 people that they weren't going to have jobs anymore. That was one of the most humbling experiences I've had at Lane."[23]

In retrospect, Spilde identified a lack of funding as the biggest regret of her time as president.[10] Dwindling state funding for higher education over the years meant the college had a greater dependence on tuition.[25] Despite cost cutting, some curricular programs also had to be cut. The 2002-03 budget year, for example, included 26 percent tuition increase, and elimination of seven professional-technical programs.[24] In two consecutive budget years, Spilde thanked the board of trustees for positive performance reviews, but refused to accept the pay raises they proposed for her. Board Chair Roge Hall said, "Her committed, decisive, and focused leadership at both local and state levels, inspires confidence and a sense of stability even in these times of unstable state funding."[26]

In 2011, Governor John Kitzhaber appointed Spilde as one of 12 members of the new Oregon Education Investment Board, "an effort to create a unified system for investing in and delivering public education from elementary to post-secondary".[7] By 2015, however, Spilde resigned from the board over her "vehement opposition" to the recommendation to implement performance-based funding. She pointed to the lack of proof that it improves education, and also to the effect of punishing "colleges that take on the toughest students: first-generation college students, those from disadvantaged minority groups, and those who need remedial help".[27]

In May 2002 Spilde convened an all-staff forum at Lane following several racial incidents on campus, including racial slurs and distribution of white power pamphlets.[28][29] She said, "We're going to deal with it. We're going to stand up and talk about it and we're going to do something about it."[28] That conversation led to establishment of clear consequences for harassment and expansion of diversity training at the college.[28]

In February 2017, Lane's Board of Trustees passed Resolution 612,[30] declaring the college a sanctuary campus in response to Executive Order 13769 limiting refugees from Muslim countries. Spilde had met with students from Syria and Iran and other countries included in the executive order banning immigrants, and said she was proud of the Board's resolution, which she fully supported.[31]

When Spilde signed the Talloires Declaration in December 2005, Lane became the first Oregon community college to make a commitment to sustainability. The college began purchasing 10 percent wind power from Eugene Water & Electric Board, and bond construction projects were designed according to LEED standards for green building design. In 2006, Spilde became a charter member of the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment group.[32] In 2014, Lane won a Green Genome Award from the American Association of Community Colleges, commended "for infusing sustainability concepts into the structure of college policies and procedures... to apply principles of sustainable economics, resource use, and social institutions to learning and working environments."[33]

Spilde has served on national committees and boards, including the League for Innovation in the Community College, the American Association of Colleges and Universities, and she has served as chair of the Board of the American Association of Community Colleges.[34]