The Board of Trustees elected an Executive Director of the Center for Lifelong Learning, who said the division is set to be up and running by September this year.

Andrew Harper, former City College Continuing Education program director, was chosen for the position in a unanimous vote by board members at a special Board of Trustees meeting Thursday, Feb. 14.

“I’d just like to thank everybody for their support and patience in this process and to show you that I’ll do my very best,” said Harper. “The center will be up and running in September and it will be a great success. ”

Harper was selected for the position out of 96 total applicants from across the nation under City College’s Superintendent-President Lori Gaskin’s recommendation.

“This is a pretty important moment,” Gaskin said. “The name before you is a culmination of an extensive recruitment, search, and hiring process.”

He began working at City College as program director for the Continuing Education division in 2009. During this time, he planned and monitored budgets totaling more than $1.5 million.

“I think it’s pretty important to note that this was a nationwide search and that the individual before you stood tall amongst the candidates. We are proud and honored to be able to bring his name to you,” said Gaskin.

Harper graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Comparative Literature from the University of East Anglia in the United Kingdom and with a master’s degree in English as a Second Language from University of Hawaii. He has experience as a classroom teacher, administrator and UCSB Director of Language and Culture Programs.

“We went from a fifty-fifty chance of succeeding to at least ninety-something percent,” said Blum about Harper’s hire.