(Columbia, Tenn. – August 14, 2009) – - – Columbia State Community College announced the hiring of Rion McDonald as Director of Institutional Research. McDonald comes to Columbia State from
Charleston, West Virginia where he served as research and planning
analyst for the West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission. He
began his duties at Columbia State on August 10.

“This position is an exciting opportunity for me on many levels,” said
McDonald. “Most importantly, I am looking forward to being a part of
Columbia State’s ongoing effort to make data-driven decisions that
benefit the school’s students, the community, and the state of
Tennessee.”

As institutional research director, McDonald is responsible for
conducting institutional research, providing institutional data,
communicating data to internal and external audiences, and preparing
reports for internal use and external agencies. He will design and
administer appropriate institutional educational studies and analyze the
results, prepare and submit reports as required for the Tennessee Board
of Regents, Tennessee Higher Education Commission, U.S. Department of
Education and other external agencies, prepare semester enrollment
reports, annual reports and other documents, and maintain centralized
research files and institutional profile data.

McDonald will also be responsible for conducting research to support
annual strategic planning and institutional effectiveness, obtaining and
reporting data, completing surveys and preparing analyses that support
institutional decision making as requested by the president or vice
presidents, maintaining a website that provides enrollment trends and
other institutional profile data, preparing reports that clearly
communicate institutional data to internal and external audiences, and
working with other college departments to obtain needed data, complete
reports, and present institutional data. His duties also include
interpreting and assuring implementation and compliance in the
department with the Tennessee Board of Regents, the Tennessee Commission
on Higher Education, and Columbia State policies.

Prior to his time at the West Virginia Higher Education Policy
Commission, McDonald served as institutional research specialist for the
Kentucky Community & Technical College System. McDonald earned a
Bachelor of Science degree in business administration from the
University of Southern Mississippi. He also earned two master’s degrees:
one in Education from the University of Alabama at Birmingham and the
other in Economics from the University of Alabama.

Columbia State is a two-year college, serving a nine-county area in
southern Middle Tennessee with locations in Columbia, Franklin,
Lawrenceburg, Lewisburg and Clifton. As Tennessee’s first community
college, Columbia State is committed to increasing access and enhancing
diversity at all five campuses. Columbia State is a member of the
Tennessee Board of Regents, the sixth largest higher education system in
the nation. For more information, please visit www.columbiastate.edu
.

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