Mallory retires from IVCCD Board

Yvonne Mallory, of Toledo, chaired her final Iowa Valley Community College District Board meeting this week. She was elected to the IVCCD Board of Directors in 2000 and has served as Board President since 2015. She has also served as Iowa Valley’s representative to the Iowa Association of Community College Trustees Board of Directors since 2015. Mallory did not seek re-election this fall, ending her 17-year legacy of service to both the IVCCD and IACCT Boards.

“Board President Mallory has consistently proven to be one of Iowa Valley’s greatest advocates,” saID Dr. Chris Duree, IVCCD chancellor. “Her passion for excellence will be missed, and people should recognize the degree to which Yvonne has supported all of us from one end of the District to the other. Without question, she has demonstrated her dedication to our mission through her actions as a deeply committed Board director. We wish her nothing but the best as she transitions to retirement and a new home in Dubuque.”

During the Board meeting, Dr. Duree presented Mallory with an Award of Merit plaque from the Iowa Association of School Boards, and he noted that the District Administrative Team and fellow Board members donated money for a tree that has been planted in her honor near the District Office on the Marshalltown campus. She was also given a gift card.

Mallory explained that she chose to seek election to a community college board back in 2000 because she values education, the strength of communities and being part of the process to improve peoples’ positions in life. “I do believe that education is the key to solving the world’s problems. No one can take an education from you; it is yours forever, and it enables one to move along a positive continuum. Steve Kenkel, former IVCCD trustee from Toledo, invited me to consider a Board position when he left the Board, and it has been a good fit for me.”

Mallory says the best thing about being on the Iowa Valley Board is the knowledge she has gained and put to good use. “I am a strong proponent of ‘smaller is better’ and believe that measurable, focused progress is most easily achieved when the bureaucracy is not huge and difficult to navigate. The IVCCD family is structured without silos and dead-end corridors. The best things about IVCCD have to do with each and every staff, faculty member, or trustee. Some are serious, some are intellectual, some are funny, some are more timid at first, some are strong leaders, and all are good souls.”

Reflecting on her 17 years on the Board, Mallory says she has a few particularly fond memories. “I am especially pleased with the progress made during the AQIP era. I do believe that leadership is collaborative and everyone has a part to play and steps up to the plate. Our strides at evolving into a cohesive, single entity called Iowa Valley have been remarkable. My other special memory is the selection of Dr. Chris Duree to be the fearless leader of the District. The Valley is a better place – a great place – for his leadership, his vision, and his skill at looking into the future and making us ready to meet new challenges.”

MCT receives summer musical funds

Marshalltown Community Theatre has received funds from the Jamie Christenson Fund for the Performing Arts.

They will get $2,000 each year, to be used to finance the MCT’s summer musicals. People can donate to this fund through the Marshall County Community Foundation.

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