Steamboat Pilot & Today

A Colorado native, music lover and experienced educator has been hired as the new dean for the Alpine Campus of Colorado Mountain College in Steamboat Springs.

Kerry Hart, who grew up in the Denver area, is dean of arts and humanities at Laramie County Community College in Cheyenne, Wyo. He said Tuesday that he had accepted the position in Steamboat and planned to begin work by mid-March.

"I'm very excited to get started and get to know everyone and the community," Hart said.

His hire caps a lengthy search that began in the summer. None of three initial finalists for the position was hired in September, and the search began again.

This time around, a selection committee led by college president Bob Spuhler and John Marin, dean of its Timberline Campus in Leadville, narrowed the field to six finalists before selecting Hart.

"In person, I basically saw no weaknesses -- I saw only strengths," said Meeta Goel, dean of institutional effectiveness for the for the college system. "He was very much a people person, with excellent communication skills, a good sense of humor and a strong focus on teaching and learning."

Before working in Laramie, Hart was dean of the Mohave Valley Campus of the Mohave Community College in Bullhead City, Ariz., where he also served as vice president of arts and enrichment studies. He also spent 10 years at Adams State College in Alamosa, as an associate professor of music and then director of the music department.

Hart earned a doctorate in music and higher education administration from the University of Northern Colorado in Greeley, after graduating from Metropolitan State College in Denver with a bachelor's degree in music education.

Now in his early 50s, Hart said he graduated from Englewood High School in 1969.

"All of my education has been in Colorado," he said. "In many ways, this will be like coming back home."

Hart said that upon arriving here, he would spend significant time assessing the needs of the college and analyzing how to improve it.

"When I first take on a new position, I don't come in with a new agenda or try to make any changes," he said. "I plan to do a lot of listening."