The Board of Trustees of Northwest Florida State College voted 4 to 3 with one abstention to terminate college president Dr. James R. “Bob” Richburg, who has served the college since August 1987.'' The eight-member governing board met Tuesday, April 28, 2009 in special session following the indictment of Richburg April 17 by a Leon County grand jury on charges of official misconduct and perjury. Trustees Esteena Wells, Sandy Sims, Dale Rice and Brian Pennington voted in favor of the termination. Trustees Wesley Wilkerson, Vercell Vance and Elizabeth Campbell voted against. Joseph “Jody” Henderson abstained citing his attorney’s advice pertaining to a potential conflict of interest.  Trustees who voted for the termination made a point of commending Dr. Richburg for his long and distinguished service to the college, but noted their opinion that the board needed to move forward with new leadership and that their vote was not a reflection or judgment on Dr. Richburg’s current legal issues. Trustees who voted against the termination had requested that the board take more time to consider its options and alternatives such as suspension or asking for Richburg’s resignation.The college’s senior vice president, Dr. Jill White, a career educator who has been in charge of the college’s instructional programs and faculty since 1997, was named by trustees as the Interim President effective immediately. White, age 62, is active in postsecondary policy making at the state level, where she served on the Charter Review Panel, and has been appointed by the Florida Commissioner of Education to a second two-year term on the State Articulation Coordinating Committee, which is the chief policy recommendation body for Florida’s K-20 education system. As Interim President, White will continue her role overseeing all instruction and faculty of the college in addition to the administrative duties of the presidency. She said that Dr. David Goetsch, the college’s vice president for campuses and centers and a noted economic development expert and author, will assist with some of the community duties of the president’s office.In a related action, trustees voted to advise Governor Crist of the board’s intent to honor his request for the college to reimburse the state for $310,000 in funds disbursed to date for an Okaloosa Joint Use Emergency Response Workforce Center. The board noted in its motion that it had acted in good faith to expend funds for an approved state project, and the return of funds could negatively impact college budgets and potentially students.  Accordingly, the board stated its desire to negotiate with the Governor’s Office prior to any return of funds.  In the same motion, the board voted to place the project on hold. The funds were allocated by the state for a facility in Destin that was to serve as an emergency operations staging area in times of natural disaster and as a college first responder and general education training facility.  The 2007 Florida Legislature had appropriated $6 million for the project. Northwest Florida State College is part of Florida’s system of 28 public state and community colleges and serves nearly 16,000 students annually at six campuses and centers. Formerly named Okaloosa-Walton College, the 45-year-old institution was accredited in 2003 to award baccalaureate degrees and its five years of successful baccalaureate-level programs led to the institution’s inclusion in 2008 as part of Florida’s new State College System. Currently, NWF State College is experiencing an average growth rate of 8 percent per semester and offers the lowest tuition in Florida of any public college or university. The largest graduation class in the college’s history 2,027 graduates, is scheduled to receive degrees the first week of May.

“Serving students and helping them reach their educational goals is the mission of Northwest Florida State College and the central focus of the college's trustees, faculty and staff,” reiterated Board chair Wilkerson after the meeting. “The college must continue to keep this focus paramount for our students and for the communities we serve.