By Zoey Tincknell
The Scene staff
Julie Fickas no longer has “interim” in front of her title.
St. Louis Community College has hired her to serve as president and chief academic officer for the Forest Park campus.
Fickas, 52, has been overseeing campus operations for about a year. She was one of three candidates vying to fill the position.
“Forest Park is a neat campus,” Fickas said. “It’s the only campus in the city. I love being a part of this campus and having that strong community feel.”
The other two candidates were Ted Lewis, provost and vice president of academic affairs at Bluefield State College in West Virginia; and Feleccia Moore-Davis, provost and vice president for academic affairs at Tallahassee Community College in Florida.
Moore-Davis will become president and chief academic officer for STLCC’s Meramec campus.
Fickas was hired by Chancellor Jeff Pittman and the STLCC Board of Trustees.
In a phone interview last week, Pittman said he was looking for someone with strong leadership skills and the ability to work with people in the surrounding community.
“Julie’s a success story within the college, working her way up the latter,” he said. “I believe she can give hope to current and future students.”
Pittman said Fickas is “very familiar with the culture” at Forest Park and can help graduating students find opportunities to use their skills and earn higher wages in the local workforce.
Pittman also said Fickas’ science background will help her ensure the success of the new Center for Nursing and Health Sciences, which is expected to open this fall on the Forest Park campus.
“I’m really happy for Julie,” said Brenda Bell-Foster, secretary in science, technology, engineering, mathematics (STEM) and business, where Fickas served as dean for a year before becoming interim president.
“She’s very approachable and intelligent. I can see how she’s improving the college, being very proactive.”
Tayna Carr, student accounts assistant for Campus Life, hasn’t worked much with Fickas one-on-one, but she has found her to be easy to talk to and personable.
“I hope that she can bring some unity to the departments and the overall student body to provide an overall better experience for our students,” Carr said.
Fickas started her career as a corneal researcher who studied the effect of hard contact lenses on the eyes. She didn’t intend to follow in her father’s footsteps and become an educator, but she got an opportunity to teach a biology lab and enjoyed interacting with students.
Fickas taught biology at Lindenwood University in St. Charles and Parkland College in Champaign, Illinois, before joining the STLCC faculty in 2009.
Fickas taught biology on the Florissant Valley campus, served as department chairwoman for five years and moved to the Forest Park campus in 2017 as dean of STEM and business.
Fickas earned a doctorate in interdisciplinary leadership from Creighton University in Nebraska while working full time for the college.
At Forest Park, Fickas wants to expand training programs to help students prepare for a fast-changing workforce in a fast-paced world. She also has plenty of other ideas.
“My mantra has always been working on the small things to create big change,” she said. “If you’ve noticed, I have been adding new furniture to create a nice area for students to study and to collaborate with other students.”
Fickas’ husband, the Rev. Rodney Fickas, is a pastor. They have three grown sons who all attended STLCC; three grandchildren and one grandchild on the way.
In her free time, Fickas loves to bake, hike, bike and do other outdoor activities that expose her grandchildren to nature. She’s an avid gardener who has both native and vegetable gardens.
“When you’re pulling weeds, you don’t have to think that much, and I find it very relaxing,” she said.
Reporter Timothy Bold contributed information for this story.