Hackley Calls It Quits after Two Years Doing `Undoable’ Job
Charlotte, N.C.–Soon after he became president of the North
Carolina Community College System two years ago, Dr. Lloyd “Vic”
Hackley began encountering friction.
Some people said he was forceful — too forceful. Others complained
he was an outsider who didn’t know the community college system.
Following weeks of speculation, Hackley announced on January 9 that
he’ll leave the presidency of the country’s third-largest community
college system by the end of the school year to pursue other interests.
Hackley’s hard-charging style — coupled with the difficulty of a
politically charged job that gave him little real power — conspired to
do him in, observers said.
In an interview after his announcement, Hackley said no one forced
him out. “This is my call; I have made it; and I made it with a lot of
soul-searching because the community college system is so important.”
Still, he says: “I am not naive enough to believe that everybody with whom I work wanted me to be here.”
