The Community Colleges for Iowa celebrated the 2024 winners of the annual Community Colleges for Iowa Awards, including two Southwestern Community College (SWCC) employees, Regina Long of Creston and Kim Oaks of Murray, during a reception and dinner on Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2024, at the Des Moines Marriott in downtown Des Moines.
Long has served as a full-time business and information technology instructor for SWCC since August 1999. Throughout the years, she has been instrumental in developing assessment processes at SWCC and in communicating the importance of assessment to her colleagues. Long regularly attends the Higher Learning Commission (HLC) conference and has served as a faculty representative for Iowa Department of Education accreditation visits. Furthermore, she has contributed as a member of SWCC’s quality faculty plan committee and has often represented the college on the statewide faculty advisory committee.
Oaks, SWCC director of continuing education & business training, began her career at the college in 1984. Kim has been responsible for establishing training classes for employers and the general public, coordinating state mandated and state recognized programs, and overseeing non-credit registration and the data management system, among many other duties. Throughout her career, Oaks has become the go-to-person both locally and statewide for business and industry training programs, as well as reporting. During the last year, Oaks has worked diligently with college administrators to prepare and launch a CDL training program. From playing a lead role in preparing a CDL grant application, hiring instructors, preparing curriculum, and securing equipment, while performing the other duties of her position, her impact on training has been felt by many across southwest and south-central Iowa.
The Outstanding Community Colleges for Iowa Awards celebrate one staff and one faculty member from each community college. Additionally, there are four competitive awards community colleges can nominate for, including equity & inclusion, business & industry partnership, innovation, and alumni.
Community Colleges for Iowa advocates with one voice for accessible excellence in education. As a nonprofit, volunteer membership association and the primary advocate for Iowa’s 15 community colleges, the group provides leadership on issues affecting the colleges and represent the collective needs, vision, and values of the colleges to state and federal policymakers.