TJC Prepares to Inaugurate New President

TYLER — With more than 660 faculty and nearly 13,000 students per semester, TJC awards more than 2,500 degrees and certificates each year. With that current reality in mind, the school looks back as it prepares to inaugurate President Dr. Juan E. Mejia on Friday. Tyler Junior College has had 7 presidents in the past 93 years.

G.O. Clough – 1926-27
In 1926, the city of Tyler had a population of almost 17,000 and was experiencing prosperity and bright prospects for the future. To ensure future growth, city leaders sought to provide affordable higher education for local students who otherwise would have had to travel large distances to attend the closest state university. With strong public endorsement, Clough was named TJC’s first president and J.M. Hodges was selected as dean.

J.M. Hodges – 1927-46
Hodges went on to serve as president from 1927 to 1946, a period that saw TJC’s enrollment drop during the Great Depression and then rebound from a federally sponsored aviation program instituted in 1939 during World War II followed by a surge in enrollment during post-war prosperity.

Dr. Harry Jenkins – 1946-81
In 1945, voters overwhelmingly approved creating a separate junior college district and passed a bond election, clearing the way for a self-supporting college. That same year, a man whose name became synonymous with Tyler Junior College – Dr. Harry Jenkins – was appointed president of TJC. Jenkins led 35 years of growth and expansion of the College. He recruited high school faculty to teach at TJC part time, established athletic programs (and demanded they win), convinced the federal government to donate old Camp Fannin buildings to the College, expanded vocational and technical programs, and worked with area hospitals to make an existing nursing school part of TJC. Jenkins oversaw campus expansion by broadening the tax district to include area school districts and enlisting private donations to help spur a campus building program.

Dr. Raymond Hawkins – 1981-94
In 1981, Dr. Raymond Hawkins became president of TJC and, for 13 years, oversaw a major campus master plan that called for construction of a student center, a new residence hall, a health and physical education facility and an administration building.

Dr. Bill Crowe – 1994-2007
Dr. Bill Crowe, who had served in two dean positions and as associate vice president, was selected to succeed Hawkins in 1981. Crowe is heralded for helping the College navigate through its loan debt that allowed for the new buildings and for connecting TJC to major donors during his 13-year tenure. During Crowe’s time at TJC, enrollment first broke through the 10,000 mark, with 10,021 students attending in fall 2007.

Dr. Mike Metke – 2007-19
Dr. Mike Metke succeeded Crowe in December 2007. During the Metke era from 2007 to 2019, TJC’s enrollment grew to more than 12,000 students, infrastructure was improved and shored up, and the Presidential Honors Program was strengthened. New buildings were added, including the Robert M. Rogers Nursing & Health Sciences Center, the Energy Center at TJC West, and the Crossroads residential hall, as well as major expansion of the TJC Earth and Space Science Center featuring Hudnall Planetarium.

Mejia inauguration set Friday, Oct. 11
On July 1, Dr. Juan E. Mejia became TJC’s seventh president. He will be inaugurated in a formal ceremony at 3 p.m. Friday, Oct. 11, in Wagstaff Gymnasium on the TJC campus. Admission is free, and the public is invited to attend. He joined TJC in 2013 as vice president for student affairs and soon after assumed the role of provost and vice president for academic and student affairs. Most recently, he served as president for branch locations and district provost. Prior to TJC, Mejia served as vice president for academic affairs and chief academic officer at South Texas College, where he is also recognized as a founding member of the institution.