Smith to Retire from AACC Next Year

On August 1, 1994, Martha “Marty” Smith became Anne Arundel Community College’s fifth president and, now, she has determined that she will use that same date in 2012 to hand the reins over to the sixth as the college celebrates its 50th anniversary. 

Smith made her announcement to the college’s Board of Trustees this week, and made the final decision just last month, during the school’s spring break.

“It had been on my internal radar screen for about six months,” said Smith in a phone interview. “I was weighing when would be a good transition time for me and the college.” 

During her 17 years as AACC president, the college has seen tremendous growth in size and scale of the student population and the educational opportunities offered.

Active in both the national educational field and in the local community, Smith has served as a member of many national boards, including the 20-member Board of Directors of the League for Innovation in the Community College. She also has served on the Maryland Education Council and as a Maryland representative on the national Education Commission of the States. She currently serves as a member of the Governor’s Workforce Investment Board, a member of the Fort Meade Alliance and the board of the Annapolis and Anne Arundel County Chamber of Commerce.

She recently joined the presidents of the other Maryland community colleges in supporting and implementing the “Student Success 2020” initiative that focused on increasing students’ completion of their educational goals during the next decade.

Smith remains committed to finding new strategies for accomplishing those goals, as well as overseeing the new Middle States Self Study initiative during the next year. She also will help oversee the board’s expansion plans in West County in the coming year.

And her plans after her time with AACC?

“I am embarrassed to say that as one who makes planning a priority, I haven’t planned out my future just yet,” said Smith. “I do know that I will miss the best faculty and staff in higher education in this country who have such passion and commitment.”