Creston— The Southwestern Community College (SWCC) board of directors met on Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2026, at 5:30 p.m., in the college’s Administration Center, for the regular monthly board meeting.
The board approved 2026-27 appointments to the SWCC Education Foundation board of directors, as follows: Bryant Blay of Red Oak, Kevin Britten of Red Oak, Jeremy Evers of Osceola, David Greene of Mount Ayr, Julie Lanning of Creston, Shawna Parrish of Diagonal, Lindsay Stoaks of Corning, and Alec Turner of Corning. Brandi Shay, SWCC chief financial officer, said the board remains the same as was approved by the board of directors during the spring 2026 semester.
Dr. John Franklin, SWCC vice president of instruction, presented program reports for two career and technical education (CTE) programs: auto collision repair/refinish and automotive repair technology. Franklin said CTE programs are required to do program reviews every five years. He said enrollments in the auto programs have been steady during the past five years, and both programs now have high school Career Academies.
Program instructors Jeff Magneson, auto collision repair/refinish instructor, and Jeff Sorensen, auto repair technology instructor, were in attendance and spoke to the board.
Magneson offered relevant industry information about careers in the auto industry. He said that, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median annual salary for a collision repair technician is $54,890 (roughly $26.39 per hour). Annual salaries in Iowa are even higher at $56,420 per year. Magneson also shared information about where some of Southwestern’s recent grads are now working.
Franklin finished up the program reports by telling the board about recent data from the state showing SWCC’s rankings among its community college peers. As one of Iowa’s 15 community colleges, SWCC ranks as follows:
- First in success rate
- Second in graduation rate
- Sixth in transfer rate
Cole Higgins, SWCC athletic director, spoke to the board about recent athletic highlights in sports shooting, golf, and volleyball. He said the volleyball team is currently ranked sixth in the conference with 12 wins, which is the highest number of wins since the 2018 season.
Higgins reminded the board of the Athletic Fundraiser, the department’s largest fundraiser of the year, on Thursday, Nov. 12. He said the event is very unique in the state, and tickets are available online or in person from any member of the athletic department staff.
Wayne Pantini, SWCC vice president of economic development, updated the board about progress at the skilled trades building construction site. He said contractors are now framing interior walls and drywall could be hung as soon as the week of Oct. 19.
Pantini said bids for the landscaping work at the newly updated main entrance to the Creston campus are due on Thursday, Oct. 15, and the project should be completed by December 1.
He spoke about House file 2799 related to the community colleges’ 260E programs, stating a subcommittee has been appointed to study the rules and execution of the programs throughout the state. Pantini said he will be a member of the statewide subcommittee.
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