Dr. Craig McDaniel, the president of Coosa Valley Technical College, will become the president of the combined Coosa Valley and Northwestern technical colleges when the institutions officially merge on July 1, 2009, Technical College System of Georgia Commissioner Ron Jackson announced.

Commissioner Jackson also named Jeff King, who has been the acting president at Northwestern, to be the new provost of the Northwestern campus effective July 1.

The announcement today will help facilitate the merger process, though both men will remain in their current positions until the merger is complete, officials said.

Both of the selections were approved today by the state board that oversees the Technical College System of Georgia during their monthly meeting at the TCSG’s Atlanta office.

Commissioner Jackson met last week with the local boards of directors from each college and sought their input on his selections before submitting them for approval by the state board.

He said, “Dr. McDaniel is well-known and highly-respected throughout northwest Georgia as a visionary for technical education, and Jeff King has long been an integral part of the growth of Northwestern Technical College.

“Together, they will provide outstanding leadership for the merged colleges and a strong desire to deliver the very best in workforce development all through the region.”

A decision on the new name for the college is forthcoming from the combined boards of the two colleges. It will become the state system’s fifth-largest technical college with an annual credit enrollment of almost 8,200 students studying in a wide variety of degree, diploma and certificate of credit programs. The college will also continue to offer the full slate of adult education, continuing education and workforce training programs.

The consolidation will not involve the closing of any facility on either campus. The colleges will, however, share resources. The larger, more efficient college will be capable of providing more programs, more instruction, and an altogether better education experience for the students, it was stated.

Dr. McDaniel has been the president of Coosa Valley Technical College since 1998. His prior experience includes four years as the vice president of planning and development at North Metro Technical College in Acworth from 1994 to 1998. Prior to that, he spent 15 years at Coosa Valley where he held several leadership positions including vice president of economic development, vice president of instructional services, vice president of student services and vice president of administrative services.

Dr. McDaniel has doctorate of education and specialist in education degrees from the University of Georgia, a master’s in education from Georgia State University, and a bachelor of science from Carson Newman College.

Jeff King was named acting president of Northwestern Technical College after the retirement of the college’s previous president in February 2008. King had been the college’s vice president of administration since 1993. He has 13 years of prior experience in private business in northwest Georgia, including vice president of King Power Equipment in Lafayette, Ala., from 1987 to 1993.

He has a master’s in business administration from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga and a bachelor of science from Auburn University.

About the Colleges:

Coosa Valley Technical College has campuses in Rome (Floyd County), Calhoun (Gordon County) and Rockmart (Polk County). CVTC enrolled 4,480 students from in degree, diploma and certificate of credit programs in 2008.

Northwestern Technical College has a campus in Rock Spring (Walker County) and also serves Catoosa, Chattooga and Dade counties. NTC enrolled 3,692 students in degree, diploma and certificate of credit programs in 2008.

More than 99% of the last year’s graduates from both colleges are either working or continuing their education.