James Raley, MacArthur Jones Named as Chair, Vice-Chair
The College of Southern Maryland reached a watershed in its nearly 50-year history when the Board of Trustees at its June meeting elected James K. Raley Jr. of Hollywood and MacArthur Jones of Calvert County as chair and vice-chair respectively. In addition to signally being the first time a representative from other than Charles County has been appointed to the board's top leadership position, outgoing Chair Joseph Shannon said, “While the board has been served by a vice chair from either Calvert or St. Mary's County for four years, this is the first time in our history to have both a chair and vice chair from counties other than Charles.”
CSM's Board of Trustees is the governing body providing leadership and oversight of the college's mission and policies. Members are appointed by the governor for five-year terms, and by 2010 the board will consist of nine members, with Calvert, Charles and St. Mary's counties to be equally represented.
The college was established in 1958 in Charles County and became the College of Southern Maryland in July 2000 with the formation of the regional college that brought together the college's four campuses in La Plata, Leonardtown, Prince Frederick and Waldorf.
“When we moved towards becoming a regional community college in 2000, this is exactly what we had hoped to accomplish. This shows the institutional maturation of the board and the school. It's a really proud moment,” said Trustee Robert Healy, who has served on the board since 1995.
“It's an honor to be a graduate of this institution and be able to come back and help the college in this manner. I appreciate and am honored by this,” Raley told his fellow board members in accepting the position, which is elected annually by the board.
A member of the board since 2000, Raley earned an associate's degree from CSM, a bachelor's degree in economics from St. Mary's College of Maryland and a master's degree in management from the University of Maryland University College. He is self-employed in a family farming operation and is an experienced professional manager.
Previously at the St. Mary's County Office of the Sheriff he served four years as the chief executive officer and for seven years as a shift commander. Raley is also currently a member of the governing board of trustees of the St. Mary's Nursing Center in Leonardtown. He is active with a number of civic organizations, including the Masons as well as the Optimist Club of Hollywood for which he served as president.
Serving his first term as vice chair for the board and a member of the board since 2003, Jones is the vice president and chief operating officer of the National Institute of Security Education Corporation. Previously he was with the Calvert County Public School System for 31 years, where he served as a teacher for eight years; vice principal at the elementary level for 11 years and two years at the middle school level; and principal at the elementary level for eight years. He recently completed a six-year term on the board of education for the Calvert County Public Schools.
Other CSM trustees are Charles R. Bailey Jr. and Mary Maddox Krug of Calvert County, Sarah “Sally” Barley and Dorothea Holt Smith of Charles County, and Janice T. Walthour of St. Mary's County. Effective July 1, Michael L. Middleton of Charles County will join the board. Serving as secretary/treasurer to the board is CSM President Dr. Brad Gottfried. For information on CSM, visit www.csmd.edu.