Business Connections for Winter 2021

Winter 2021 7 BUSINESS connections Returning toYour Roots In this magazine, we periodically highlight people in our community whose career path brought them back to their roots in Northeast Kansas. For this issue, we feature Deborah Fox, President of Highland Community College. Deborah Fox has strong roots in Kansas and in education. Fox grew up in Kansas and attended elementary school in Inde- pendence and high school in Meade. She earned an MBA from Pittsburg State University and an MS in Education Administra- tion from Fort Hays State University.This background prepared her for a career in secondary and postsecondary education. “I worked for Barton County Community College on a FIPSE (Funds for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education). Next I joined Highland Community College (HCC) to become Assistant Dean for Regional Instruction and then served as Vice President of Finance and Operations for 14 years,” said Fox. She relocated to Independence, Kansas, becoming the Director of Business Operations and Management for USD 446.This decision was made mainly for family reasons. Fox explained, “My parents moved back to the family farm outside Independence. I relocated to Independence to be closer to my parents and my brother’s family in Skiatook, Oklahoma.” However, when the opportunity presented itself to return to Highland and be HCC President after President Reist retired in 2019, Fox jumped at it. “I had spent the majority of my career at HCC and have a lot of respect for the people that work there. Many of the faculty and staff invest their personal time and attention to help HCC students succeed, beyond what is required of a job. It’s much more than a place to work. It’s a support system that encour- ages educational and personal growth among its students and employees. I missed having that type of support and frankly, I missed working in postsecondary education,” Fox said. What does Fox value most about the community of Highland? She replied, “The community of Highland is incredibly supportive of HCC.They understand that they alone do not keep the College operational but are appreciative of what it brings to the educa- tional, social, and economic environment of the community and Northeast Kansas.” Fox added, “I missed the people of Highland the most when I left for Independence. I made many lifetime friendships in Highland. I missed working with the HCC students, especially the summer crews that helped get the campus ready for next school year. I also missed the willingness of the people in Doniphan County to help out and the HCC alumni to lend a hand when needed.This belief in working together to make things better for everyone is not found in every community.” Deborah Fox