Joyce Hardy resigns as Chadron State vice president

Hardy said her request has been approved by CSC President Tom Krepel and will be received by the Board of Trustees of the Nebraska State Colleges at its June meeting.

“I’ve had a wonderful journey in administration. I’m pleased with many things that have been accomplished. But it’s time to go back to my passion, which is teaching,” Hardy said.

Hardy has been the vice president since July 1, 1998. She was appointed to the position when Dr. Tom Krepel, who had come to the college as vice president in August 1997, became the college’s president.

Krepel resigned as the college’s president in April 2004, also effective June 30 of this year. The presidential search committee and members of the Board of Trustees are to meet with several candidates to fill the presidency this weekend.

At the time of her appointment as vice president, Hardy said she did not intend to remain in administration for a long period of time. She said that with a new president about to be appointed, she decided it would be an ideal time for her to return to the classroom.

She holds tenure and is associate professor of science.

Hardy, who earned both her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from CSC, had taught at the college six years before she entered administration as interim dean of the School of Mathematics and Science in the summer of 1997. The following year, she was appointed vice president of academic affairs.

The former Joyce Phillips is a native of the Mullen area where she spent much of her youth on the ranch. She said her grandmother, Jessica Brott Phillips, earned a teaching certificate from Chadron State in 1919 and at least a dozen other family members have been CSC students through the years.

She attended Chadron State on a Board of Trustees’ Scholarship and was an honor student. She received her bachelor’s degree in 1981 and her master’s degree in 1988.

While in college, she married fellow student Bob Hardy. They have two children, Johannah, who will graduate from CSC in December, and James, who will be a freshman at the college this fall. A nephew and a niece graduated from CSC this spring while two more members of the Phillips family will be CSC students this fall.

While attending CSC, she was particularly active in plant research. By the time she had earned her master’s degree, she had authored or co-authored nine scientific papers that were printed in various newsletters or journals.

From 1989-91, Hardy worked on her doctorate at Brigham Young University. Her dissertation was on the drought resistance of Nebraska range grasses that she had collected on her family’s ranch. She received the Ph.D. in 1992, and soon was a full-time faculty member at CSC again.

Hardy said perhaps the highlight of her tenure in administration has been the hiring of numerous outstanding faculty members who are helping the college maintain academic excellence.

“Our new faculty have embraced the college’s tradition of not only performing extra well in the classroom, but also providing out-of-class mentoring that is invaluable to students,” Hardy commented.

She also is particularly proud of Chadron State’s involvement in the national Foundations of Excellence Project that focuses on enhancing student success while they are in college and after graduation, the expansion of extended campus programs that provide greater access to CSC academic programs and the strengthening of collaborative agreements with regional community colleges.

Hardy added that emphasis has been placed on participation by faculty and staff members at conferences focusing on the scholarship of teaching and learning as well as methods of assessing the collegiate experience.

She also said the Nebraska State College System has submitted a request to the Nebraska Coordinating Commission for Postsecondary Education to begin a new master’s degree program at the three state colleges. It will be on organizational management, which she believes will be attractive to area residents. Her office took the lead in developing the program proposal.

Serving as one of Chadron State’s top administrators also has had its challenges, Hardy said. That was particularly true for about three years this decade when massive, sustained budget cuts were necessary because of the economic slump.

“There were many nearly sleepless nights as we wrestled on how to deal with a $1.8 million reduction in state support,” Hardy said. “While we had to make numerous painful decisions, we were able to maintain all of our academic programs and retain nearly all of our faculty positions. That leaves Chadron State in a strong position now that the economy has improved and we anticipate greater state support. I believe the college’s future is a bright one.”

Hardy added that the college’s academic and student services have excellent leadership and will function well while Chadron State’s administrative changes occur.