John Fields is a student-centric, equity-minded educator dedicated to changing lives and our communities by enhancing access, improving engagement, and increasing student success. He currently serves as Executive Vice President of Learning & Student Success at Blue Mountain Community College in Oregon where he also served as Vice President of Instruction; Dean of Arts & Sciences and Dean of Fine Arts & Humanities at Florida State College at Jacksonville in Florida; tenured and adjunct faculty member at Florida Community College at Jacksonville; and high school teacher at Bishop Kenny High School in Florida.
He is a collaborative leader with a track record of successfully using his broad experiences in industry, college administration, and multiple teaching/learning roles to provide learners with instructional and non-instructional supports they need to thrive, e.g. implementing best practices such as guided pathways; establish a talent pipeline for local, state, and regional employers by nurturing symbiotic relationships with industry and community partners; assure the integrity of the learning environment through steadfast support for academic freedom and vibrant shared governance; and work across the institution to ensure an exceptional experience for every learner.
John’s strengths include program development and curriculum alignment, integration of transfer and career-technical programming, holistic student success initiatives, strategic thinking from planning through closing the loop, accreditation, bolstering business engagement, relationship building, mediation, and follow-through. As an anti-racist leader, John is committed to using his privilege to mitigate, reverse, and eradicate systemic injustices and is proud of the significant advances made in closing equity and achievement gaps over the past five years at Blue Mountain Community College in our Indigenous and Latinx populations.
John holds a Juris Doctor degree from Rutgers School of Law, an M.A. in French literature and a B.A. in French language and culture from the University of Florida, and an A.A. from Florida Community College at Jacksonville.