Farewell to Joanne Truesdell
Joanne Truesdell announced on March 9,2017 that she is stepping down from her position
as president here at Clackamas Community College. The Clackamas Print conducted an exit
interview with Joanne Truesdell and asked her to talk about her time at CCC, as well as her
future plans. Lori Hall, the Public Information Officer for CCC, sat in on the interview.
STORY AN D PHOTQ BY JARED PREBLE
ARTS AND CULTURE EDITOR
The Clackamas Print: What has been
one of your favorite accomplishments as
president?
Joanne Truesdell:! think my favorite accom
plishment is getting our Veterans Education
and Training Center recharged. Our students
who access the Vet Center often don't have
a place, and didn’t have a place to go pretty
much ajl,in Oregon. So, it was good during the
deployment and then the reintegration for us
to have stepped up and taken that level of ser
vice to people who’ve served the country.
TCP: What path in education did you
take that resulted in earning the title of
Doctor?
JT: Oh, great! My first degree, 1982 from
Clackamas Comrhunity College. My last degree,
1997, from Oregon State University. I worked
my way through college, and by that, I mean I
worked full time and went to'school full time.
Lori Hall: Share your story about how
you came to CCC.
JT: I came to CCC, I was out of high school
and I was working and didn’t know that col
lege would be an option for me. I was em
ployed and my supervisor, my director, in
about February after graduation, so about nine
months later, he was trying to figure out why
I wasn’ t in school because all of their children
were away to college and so, why not me? I
said lot’ s of things4ike “ I don’ t have enough
money,” “ Because I don’ t think it’s an option
for me,” “ I’ve heard people say that people .
like me don’t go to college,” that kinda thing.
Anyway, he said tohome up to Clackamas and
learn how to go to college or don’t come back
to work. That was how I took it. He might not
have said that literally, but at 19, that’ s how 1
took it.
So, Tcame up here, and 1 sat in the parking
lot for about 40 minutes trying to figure out,
every excuse possible about why I didn’ t go in
and what I could tell him -things that I knew
he wouldn’ t believe. And then I went into the
Community Center which looked pretty sim
ilar to the Community Center we have now
and I met someone who actually acted and
said things that made it kind of normal that
I would, of course be interested in attending
college, why wouldn’t I? So, I got what I need
ed when I came into a friendly environment
and I stayed. It took a lot to stay, so it’ s not
President Truesdell sporting her first degree which she received from Clackamas Community College in 1982. She received her last degree in 1997 from
Oregon State University.