SFCC presidential candidate Kelly emphasizes student success, community connections

Published 11:42 pm Monday, October 26, 2026

The first of four finalists seeking to become State Fair Community College’s next president, Jess Kelly, emphasized student success, community connections and a commitment to building on the college’s existing strengths during a public forum Monday, Oct. 26.

Kelly, chief academic officer and executive director of online teaching and learning at Lone Star College Online in Houston, Texas, addressed faculty, staff, students and community members at Stauffacher Theatre on SFCC’s Sedalia campus.

Kelly is the first candidate to participate in a series of public forums and community social hours scheduled for Oct. 26-29. The forums allow the public to hear from each finalist, ask questions and provide feedback to the SFCC Board of Trustees as it considers the college’s next president.

During his opening remarks, Kelly described how a community college professor changed the course of his life by helping him recognize his own potential.

As a student at Tyler Junior College in rural East Texas, Kelly recalled a professor named Judith Parks who placed a drop of pond water under a microscope and invited him to look.

“What stuck to me, more than the science, more than that experience, was that she had opened a door and allowed me to see something in myself that I had not yet seen,” Kelly said.

The experience helped inspire his career in higher education, eventually leading him to earn a doctorate in biology from Baylor University.

Kelly said his experience as a rural community college student shaped his understanding of the role institutions such as SFCC can play in students’ lives.

“We have the privilege of offering our help to students and to showing them opportunities they’ve yet to see in themselves, every day,” Kelly said.

He added that the impact of education extends beyond individual students, strengthening families and communities across generations.

Kelly said his career has included leadership responsibilities involving operations, compliance, accreditation, athletics, instruction and online learning. Those experiences, he said, have helped him understand the responsibilities of college leadership and the importance of keeping an institution focused on its mission.

He also emphasized the importance of investing in faculty and staff who support students and their educational goals.

“Academic excellence matters, stewardship matters and accountability matters,” Kelly said. “But they’re important because they underscore the mission of what we’re trying to accomplish, and that is to provide a transformative opportunity to change the trajectory of a student’s life.”

Kelly said he had spent considerable time studying SFCC’s history, students, surrounding communities and strategic plan since the presidential position was posted in April.

He praised the plan’s emphasis on community partnerships, connections with kindergarten through 12th-grade schools and student success.

“I recognize that this college is already very strong,” Kelly said. “And you have people here who love it, and you’ve got a proud history.”

Rather than arrive with a model from another institution, Kelly said he would focus on learning about SFCC and working with those already invested in its future.

“What I will come to you with is a commitment to learn, to be present, to listen to what is important to each of you,” Kelly said.

He also pledged to be visible on campus and throughout the community, preserve what is working and collaborate on opportunities to strengthen the college.

Kelly said his interest in the presidency also reflects conversations with his wife, Marilyn, about the kind of community where they wanted to live, build relationships and serve.

As they learned more about Sedalia and SFCC, he said, they saw a connection between the community and the priorities they had identified for the next chapter of their lives.

“For me, this presidency is not about an attainment, but rather, it is a profound commitment to serve,” Kelly said.

He described student success as something that can take different forms, including earning a degree, transferring to another institution, obtaining a workforce credential, developing skills for career advancement or returning to education after a difficult period.

Kelly said SFCC’s responsibility is to help students identify and pursue those goals, regardless of where they begin.

“We need to create those opportunities for students whose future may depend on us,” Kelly said. “And it may depend on just somebody who believes in them.”

Kelly concluded by returning to the story of the professor who helped him discover his potential.

“Ultimately, I would love to join you, because I want to transform lives,” Kelly said. “Just like one person transformed mine, in a single drop.”

Scott Simoneaux, SFCC’s executive director of human resources, opened the forum by explaining that the Board of Trustees wants feedback from the campus and broader community as it considers the finalists.

Attendees can submit questions and provide feedback through the college’s presidential search webpage, https://www.sfccmo.edu/about/presidential-search/. Feedback will be forwarded to the board for consideration.

Each finalist is scheduled to participate in two public forums, at 11 a.m. and 2:15 p.m., in Stauffacher Theatre. The forums will also be livestreamed at sfccmo.edu/presidential-search.

Chris Howell can be reached at 660-530-0146.