CCBO Board Member Carla Chance Honored with Mel Carnahan Award

The Missouri Community College Association honored Carla Chance with the group’s highest honor, the Mel Carnahan Award, at their annual convention in Branson on November 3. Ms. Chance served as St. Louis Community College’s Vice Chancellor for Finance and Business Services starting October 1999. She has since moved to Cincinnati State Technical and Community College, where she is the Vice President for Administration.

While at STLCC, Ms. Chance was responsible for budget management, physical facilities, auxiliary services, financial resources management, and procurement. During her time at STLCC, Ms. Chance coordinated five major new construction projects, including the addition of a fourth campus, STLCC-Wildwood. Wildwood received the United States Green Building Council’s (USGBCs) LEED Gold certification--the first Gold Building in the St. Louis Metropolitan area. Subsequent projects included the replacement Harrison Education Center, also a LEED Gold Project. Environmental sustainability has been infused into the College’s facility projects. Ms. Chance provided leadership for the development of the District’s first facilities planning document (master plan) and has also provided leadership in e-commerce initiatives including payroll direct deposit, the student OneCard ID and disbursement system, and an electronic student tuition payment plan. Through entrepreneurial planning, Ms. Chance supported STLCCs efforts to acquire the new Center for Workforce Innovation and the Corporate Center—two projects that are instrumental in the College’s workforce development efforts.

(Ms. Chance giving her acceptance speech at the convention)

She served as president of MCCA in 2005 representing the twelve Missouri community college districts. Additionally, Ms. Chance has served on the Higher Education Funding Task Force. Ms. Chance was selected as one of the 2007 Outstanding Chief Business Officer Award recipients by the Community College Business Officer (CCBO) Association. In 2010, Ms. Chance received the St. Louis Business Journal CFO of the Year Award.

Zora Mulligan, MCCA’s executive director, commended Chance on her long service to STLCC and the Association. "Carla used her strong financial analytical abilities to help guide the Association to decisions that benefitted not just St. Louis Community College, but community colleges throughout the state. She never lost sight of community colleges’ special mission and the students we all work together to serve. She will truly be missed by me and by her colleagues."