Michael Hayden at National Intelligence University's Commencement

Mark James most recently served as chancellor of Metropolitan Community College of Kansas City, 
Missouri. In his role with the institution, he steered Metropolitan Community College through the complex financial challenges, due to a significant drop in state appropriations and enrollment. 

Mark James holds a master’s in strategic intelligence from National Intelligence University (NIU), which welcomed Michael Hayden as its 2017 commencement speaker. A retired four-star general from the U.S. Air Force, Michael Hayden has held numerous high-level positions throughout his career, including director of the National Security Agency, director of the Central Intelligence Agency, and principal deputy director of national intelligence during the George W. Bush administration. He graduated from NIU and was granted an honorary doctorate in 2001. 

Michael Hayden is now a principal at the Chertoff Group and the chairman of the National Intelligence University Foundation. A prominent writer and speaker on national security topics, he wrote the book Playing to the Edge: American Intelligence in the Age of Terror, which was published in 2016. 

NIU was honored to welcome Mr. Hayden to its 2017 commencement, where Dr. David Ellison, the university’s president, delivered degrees to some 250 students in its three programs: the master of science and technology intelligence, the master of science of strategic intelligence, and the bachelor of science in intelligence.

MCC Goes Green with Installation of Solar Panels

Recently, Mark James retired from his position as chancellor of Metropolitan Community College in Kansas City, Missouri. While overseeing the college, Mark James helped integrate the five campuses and drive innovation. 

In addition, Metropolitan Community College undertook an initiative to install solar panels during his tenure. Since summer 2015, 18 buildings on three different campuses installed solar panels.

While students cannot easily see the solar panels, they can follow the amount of energy they are producing through an online tool at www.MCCKC.edu/Solar-Panels. From this website, individuals can choose the MCC-Maple Woods, MCC-Business & Technology, or the MCC-Penn Valley campuses to see exactly how much energy the solar panels have produced. Using the menu, individuals can specify a time period and see how much energy has been produced in kilowatt-hours. 

The program also shows how many single-family homes this energy could power and equates the carbon offset to pounds of coal saved and number of trees that would have to be planted to produce the same effect.