Oct 16th, 2019
Dr. Jeff Sisk, Jackson State Community College alum and president of the Tennessee Colleges of Applied Technology at Jackson and Whiteville, begins his tenure as interim president of Jackson State today, Oct. 16.
He was appointed interim president by Tennessee Board of Regents Chancellor Flora W. Tydings after Jackson State President Dr. Allana Hamilton accepted a job with the Board of Regents. Her last day at Jackson State was Tuesday, Oct. 15.
Sisk, who said he will not be a candidate for president of Jackson State, will serve until a search for the next president is concluded and the new president takes office.
"I am honored that Chancellor Tydings asked me to serve as interim president during the search," Sisk said. "Jackson State has a special place in my family's heart. I'm an alum, my wife Stephanie is an alum, and my son Mitch is a freshman baseball player here."
Hamilton was appointed vice president of academic affairs for the Board of Regents and chief academic officer of the College System of Tennessee. She was president of Jackson State for nearly three years.
Regent Barbara Prescott will chair a search committee appointed by the Board of Regents. The committee will include some board members and representatives of the Jackson State faculty, students, staff, alumni and the broader community served by the college.
Sisk will remain president of the Tennessee Colleges of Applied Technology at Jackson and Whiteville and keep his office at the TCAT Jackson campus.
"TCAT Jackson and JSCC both have great leadership teams in place," Sisk said. "Also, technical college and community college presidents in Tennessee attend many of the same statewide meetings. Those factors will make my schedule manageable."
Sisk has also served as an Assistant Director, Student Services Counselor and Instructor of Computer Information Technology on various campuses in the technical college system. For the past 22 years, his career has focused on helping students learn the skills necessary to be successful in the workplace.
He earned both a doctorate in higher and adult education and a master's degree in educational leadership from the University of Memphis. He holds a bachelor's degree from Lambuth University and an associate degree from Jackson State.
"Jackson State was where I restarted my academic pursuits - a few years after not succeeding at a local four-year institution," Sisk said. "It was exactly what I needed at the time. My experience at JSCC jumpstarted my career and is a major reason I am where I am today." He said Jackson State faculty members when he was there in the late 1980s and early 1990s were personally invested in his success and made a huge impact on his career.